


A Weekend At Nerris'

by theboybismark



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Awkward Crush, Child Abuse, Developing Friendships, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Enemies to Friends, F/F, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Moderate Dadvid, Multi, Other, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Platonic Relationships, Queerplatonic Relationships, The feeling was "friendship" but neither had ever experienced it, Trans Character, nerris is trans
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-01
Updated: 2018-06-30
Packaged: 2019-01-07 02:07:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 23,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12223563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theboybismark/pseuds/theboybismark
Summary: Nerris has really, really nice parents. They respect her needs and support her wants, sure, but sometimes they can be a little dumb. Like, arranging a weekend sleepover between their daughter and Harrison wasn't the smartest thing to do, right? Especially without her permission. This isn't how she really wanted to spend her Spring Break, not at all.





	1. Disaster Strikes

"That's it for this week, guys. Did you like the session?- Yes, I _am_ trying something new with the homebrew race, you noticed the different appearance in character- NO, Neil, they did  _not_ have a higher constitution score than last time,  _this_ variant just has a higher strength and a lower dexterity. _Yes,_ Neil, it's a different variant, you can  _see_ they're blue and you can  _infer_ they know spells from the wizard spell list!" 

Nerris leaned back in her rolling desk chair, heaving an overly exaggerated sigh. After recruiting Neil to play Dungeons and Dragons online with her and her internet friends, the two usually spent about thirty minutes after the session arguing with about her homebrew monsters and storylines, much to the amusement of other players. She never gave away any spoilers, though.

"Nerris!" The slightly exasperated voice of the young Dungeon Master's mother ran out behind her closed door, and she winced.

"Text me. We'll finish this later, my mom's calling." She closed her discord as soon as everyone said goodbye. She took off her headphones, put on her elf ear cuffs, and raced to the door, opening it for her mother, who respected her privacy enough to wait. 

"Hey, mom, what's up?" She longed to tell someone about how her game went, but Dad was just coming back from a three-day out-of-city recreational event and was due home soon. Mom wasn't exactly an avid player. She was still really cool, though.

"Honey. We need to talk about camp." Nerris stared up at her mom, blinking once or twice before crossing her arms and giving a dramatic exhale. "Look, mom, I _know_ I'm fourteen now and I _know_ that camp is childish but I still really like it-"Her mother cut her off by resting a hand on her shoulder, steering her down the hall to the living room. Serious talks shouldn't be had while standing up, so they took a seat on the old couch, light brown leather stained lightly with grape juice, reminders of Nerris' childhood and nights made late by pretending to play tabletop games with dolls.

Nerris took to drumming her fingers on her leg while her mother took a moment to gather her (usually scattered) thoughts. "Nerrie, first of all, I'm not taking you out of camp. I'm actually really happy you're making friends with other kids. In person." That last bit seemed a bit pointed, and in response, Nerris pointedly ignored it. She was mostly happy she wouldn't get taken out of camp and gave her mother a grateful hug. Summer would be officially boring without Camp Campbell. "Thanks, mom!"

"But," Her mother smiled, patting her daughter's hair, "this is about- erm. Okay, Nerris." She drew back hesitantly, "Have you had any... problems with the other children there?" A bemused Nerris shook her head. She still got on pretty well with most of the kids, and the other precious few just weren't likable.

"I got an email from a man named David and a woman named Gwen, and well.  They think there are some... _hostilities_ between you and some boy. His name was... Harrison, I think?" Nerris' eyebrows drew together, and her mouth pressed into a thin line, though it did not turn down. "Yeah. _Everyone_ has an issue with him. He's like, the _worst_. You met him a few years ago, remember? At Parent's Day. The doofus in the top hat."

Nerris' mom _did_ remember him quite vividly. Somehow, some way or another, vanilla pudding just found its way into Nerris' hat; she'd jammed it on her head after he knocked it off, and it ran down her face and got on her glasses and she chased him out of the mess hall, screaming that she was going to kill him. Did that count as bullying? if so, who was bullying who?

"Hon," Her mother spoke softly, "The camp thought it would be best if, maybe, you two were to try and get along outside of camp." Nerris shook her head and pulled a face. "Hah! As if. He lives in the country, you can tell by the way his parents dress. And he's ugly!"

"Nerris!" Her mother snorted but quickly hid it behind a deadpan. "You can't go around calling your peers ugly, this is why someone thinks there's a problem!" Her tone was laced with mirth and a hint of exasperation, so Nerris knew she wasn't actually in trouble or anything. And it was a nice way to change the subject so her mother wouldn't get back to the whole 'hanging out with Harrison on purpose' thing.

No such luck. Sounds of the front door knob jimmying and rustling turned both of their attention, and in stepped Nerris' father, still dressed in full on medieval armor.

"Dad!!" Nerris jumped up, rushing to hug the aforementioned father. Chainmail jingled as he picked her up. "I thought you were gonna go bard this time! With an urchin background, wouldn't you get proficiency in lighter armor?'

"Well, I went fighter instead, so I had a soldier background and heavy armor proficiency. Made good use of the chainmail! Anyways, kid, I thought you could use some cheering up, so I picked this up for you." Nerris' father set her down and dropped the bag he had slung over his shoulder. He pulled out a dice set, handing it over carefully as if the dice would break if dropped.

"They're nicely weighted, despite being made of wood. Lacewood, actually, from Brazil. Cori picked 'em up in Louisville a few years ago and didn't like the little lines in the dice. See?" He rambled a bit about how Cori, his LARP, and general DnD friend had given them to him with instructions to give them to his 'firecracker of a kid.' Nerris carefully opened the box, running her fingers along the side of the D8 die and feeling the little ridges and lines her dad had talked about.

"Awesome," She breathes, before beaming up at her dad. "Thanks!"

"Yeah, well. Just figured you could use 'em when Har..." Nerris' mother cleared her throat and stood.

"I haven't-" And she shook her head quickly. His eyes widened and he fidgeted a small bit, clearing his throat. "Oh."

"What?" The girl tilted her head, confused, and crossed her arm once more. She didn't like this sneaky parental-language she was not privy to.

"Well," Her father force a smile and ruffled up her hair, already a bit disheveled from prior rufflings earlier. "Some of the fine folk at your nice, not LARP-based summer camp thought it would be necessary for you to strengthen your bonds with the other kids outside of camp."

"I heard that from mom." Nerris' hands felt cold and clammy, and she looked down at the ground, not liking where this was going. Spending more time with Harrison is not what she wanted  _ever_. "And I already talk to Neil and Max and Nikki, and Preston and I go to the same school. Why do I need to have any more friends?" Her tone was a lot more argumentative than what she was going for.

"Well, yes, but, well, a friend you can talk to face to face." Nerris was oddly quiet as her father continued. She got that from mom too. Was it really an issue? "That Harrison kid only lives a bit more than an hour away, give or take, and we've been talking to his parents, and we've arranged a meeting."

Nerris frowned. She _guessed_ she could do one meeting. An hour or two of being belittled by that funny-talking kid was bearable. "Okay. Where and when's the meeting?"  If she were going to use the die, it would probably be at the park or a free room at the library or the Y.

"Well, here. A weekend sleepover, doesn't that sound fun? You haven't had one of those in a while-"

"WHAT!?" Nerris basically shrieked, dropping the die she currently held, where it bounced away from her on the dark red carpet. "So the gift was a _bribe?_ Really classy, dad! I'd rather kiss a _wyvern_ than let that little gremlin in this house for five seconds! I'll- I'll sic Daisy on him and drive him out with Melf's Acid Arrow! Cast at a higher level! How could you _do_ this to me?" Daisy was Nerris' "familiar," a cockatoo.

She started to storm off, before looking back, grabbing the box of dice and the fallen D8. "I'm still keeping this!" She fully stomped off this time, fuming silently, the red hue of anger mixing in with the dark tint of her skin.

Her parents exchanged weary smiles, and her father went to join her mother by the couch. They both crashed onto it with a sigh. "Okay, translate."

"A wyvern is like, a dragon, and Melf's Acid Arrow is a second-level evocation that involves conjuring an arrow made of poison and shooting it at a chosen target. Higher level means it hurts more."

"Mhm. Okay." Nerris' mother nodded a bit, understanding, and sighed. "...That was a bit dramatic. Maybe she shouldn't hang around that theater boy so much. And I can't believe you _bribed_ our daughter."

He chuckled slightly, slinging an arm around her. "It worked, didn't it?"

"Mm. Just make sure they don't kill each other when I'm at work."


	2. Simple Skype Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nerris needs advice as to how to handle the whole "Harrison is ruining my life and he isn't even in it right now" thing. Luckily, she does know of three agents of chaos that could give her some simple advice.

"I'm _dying._ " Nerris wailed into her computer's microphone, her loud complaining causing Neil to wince. 

"C'mon, a sleepover isn't _too_ bad." Neil was still under the impression Skype was better than other video-calling services, so that's what they used. Max was hanging out at Neil's house on the basis of studying, although they were really just watching cable and reviewing flashcards during commercial breaks. The Big Bang theory blared in the background.

"It's not just a _sleepover_ , Neil, It's a weekend sleepover! Friday afternoon to Sunday evening with _Harrison_? This is not how I wanted to kick off spring break!" She was still fuming, her voice picking up speed, volume, and pitch as she went on.

"Jesus Christ, Nerris," Max cut in, "If I didn't know you, I wouldn't know what the _fuck_ a 'wheckendshlepover' was!" He mimicked her lisp, brought on by years of wearing braces. She can't wait to get them off already. 

"Shut up, Max!" She screwed up her face and stuck out her tongue. "This is serious. My weekend is ruined. What do I do?"

Without thinking about it, Max answered, "Ruin his weekend too. Take him to some boring-ass places. Teach him how to play DnD or Magic: The Gathering or something. Pull pranks on him. Remove the toilet paper from the bathroom before he goes in to take a shit. Be  _creative,_ Nerris." 

Gross. Feet thumped on the hardwood floors of Neil's house, just loud enough for both the boys to turn their attention away from the young DM, looking back as Nerris mulled over the idea. The door opened quickly, and Nikki stood in Neil's doorframe.

"You're calling Nerris without me!?" Nerris' heart swelled at the image of one of her best girl friends. She didn't have many of those; most girls realistically wanted nothing to do with her. Nikki didn't look hurt. In fact, her eyes gleamed with mischief, not that Nerris could see much due to Neil's crappy twenty-dollar camera.

"I call Nerris without you all literally all the time? Like, I just called Nerris without you like half an hour ago, for chrissakes! And _what_ did I tell  you about barging into my room?"

Neil's dad and Nikki's mom did end up moving in together, and Nikki annoyed her not-yet-stepbrother to no end.

"Uhh. You said don't do it, but I ain't gotta listen to you! You're a nerd." Nikki got a running start and pounced onto Neil's bed, nearly ramming into Max. The miffed boy pushed her off the now wrinkled duvet by her face. She fell with a thud.

Nerris laughed a little bit, turning her attention from Daisy tweeting in her cage back to the three fussing kids on the bed. "Hey, Nikki, you were Harrison's 'apprentice' for a few months," She called, using air quotes, "What sort of things, y'know, bug him?"

Nikki sat up and crawled back onto the bed again, pushing Max over and grabbing his ankles as she spoke, "Uhm, lots of things! You know, he doesn't like fraud magicians, you, his parents. I can give you the whole list later." Nikki had to yell; she stood up on Neil's bed (in muddy shoes) and held Max, now considerably shorter and weaker than Nikki, upside down. He was flailing and screaming, she was laughing, and Neil was fretting. "I _wish_ you wouldn't jump on my bed with shoes on?? Seriously, what the hell-"

"Nicolette! You leave those boys _alone!_ " The screeching voice of Nikki's mother caused the green-haired girl to jump, dropping Max hair-first on the muddied bed. She darted out of the room with a final "Bye, Nerris!"

Max took a moment to hyperventilate, drawing comfort by grabbing onto the sleeve of Neil's green sweater. "How do you live with that goddamn she-devil?" Neil shrugged as his best friend stood up and darted out of the room after his friend.  later, the sharp tinkling sound of something fragile breaking makes Neil jump. Another threatening " _Nicolette!"_ resounded throughout the house.

Neil sighed. "Should go diffuse the situation. Sorry I couldn't be of much help, fair Lady."

Nerris grinned. "Shut up, you goof. You cheered me up a lot, thanks." She sent him a final reassuring smile as he closed his laptop, ending the call. Nerris' face fell as soon as it ended, and she sighed, going to unlock her pet bird's cage for a little familiar-based distraction. "Daisy! I use 'Help' as a bonus action!"

Next weekend couldn't come slow enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just a short transition chapter to segway into the plot I guess?? Aka Nerris trying to ruin his time so much that he never wants to come back over again. Nice ! Chapter 3 is probably coming later today.


	3. The Universal Solvent, Preston Goodplay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Preston's always been a little intuitive. So when Nerris approaches him, whining and complaining that Harrison is coming over, and Harrison messages him the exact same sentiment with such fervor so unlike him, he starts to get the picture. And honestly, it's a hell of a lot prettier than either of the two magic kids probably know. All theatre kids know that the fine line between love and hate can be blurred with a bit of flashing lights and proper blocking, and Preston was no exception.

Preston woke up to some quality gossip, which was honestly the stuff of dreams, especially last night's dream. He normally checked his phone within thirty seconds of waking up, and this Friday wasn't any different. Huh, he had some texts from Harrison. That wasn't uncommon, but it was pretty early. 

 _Today's the day I visit Tiny Satan lol._ Sent at three in the morning. Huh, someone's been up for a while thinking about this visit, hm? Preston raised both eyebrows, quite dramatic even emerging from the vestiges of sleep.

 _Can't wait to get this over with!!_   Wasn't like Harrison to message about the same thing more than once in a row. He usually had a thing against redundancy. 

 _Has she changed at all?_ Just sent less than an hour ago. Preston grinned slyly, messaging back that yes, Nerris had changed a little bit, as people tended to do over the course of most of a year. She's mellowed out a little. Not much, but it was certainly worth mentioning.

It was... honestly kind of cute how worried he was. Nerris was intimidating, yes, but all-in-all, she was just a short nerd. Aggressively passionate about her hobbies, yes. Dangerous? Not really. He summarized that in another text.

Preston was friends with both magic kids, finding them both uniquely interesting in their own way. Even if they claimed they could never hang out with each other, they would usually man up and do it at camp "for Preston." Of course, the teenaged playwright would sometimes see them interact without his presence, but he'd never _bring it up_ and ruin what progress he'd made with them. There's nothing wrong with trying to make friends, right? Nothing wrong at all.

But, really, Preston should probably start getting ready for school. He had to make sure he looked immaculate  every day, so he woke up two hours before he was supposed to, ironed and put on his previously chosen outfit, ate a balanced breakfast with coffee, opened the door for his Gram Gram's caregiver when she stopped by, sent a text to Nerris to make sure she was awake, and spent some time reviewing his script notes. He was the student director of the current school play! Exciting!

All the while, he was pestered with texts from Harrison. He was homeschooled, and spent most of his time teaching himself actual work in the morning, and closed himself in his room in the afternoon, practicing his magic without the prying eyes of his parents. So he had pretty much all day to text Preston, who usually answered back within the minute himself. The playwright tried to be as comforting as possible, but he found it completely ridiculous that Harrison, a boy who knew  _actual_ magic and could shoot fire from his hands, was actually _scared_ of a spoiled girl with an undercut. 

"Bye Gram-Gram! Going to school now!" Preston ran out the door, barely hearing his grandmother's soft 'What was that, Harold?' as he vamoosed. He shook his head, not necessarily knowing who Harold was and displeased that Gram Gram forgot his name again. She wasn't getting on well lately. His bus stop was two streets away, and he made a dash for it despite being ten minutes early, tote bag banging against his leg all the while. 

Nerris' face looked a bit more ashen than usual on the bus ride to school in the morning. "Hi, Preston," she mumbled as her friend sat next to her, moving the bookbag she'd rested on the seat to her lap.

"You look like you've seen a ghost, Nerrie!" Preston feigned serious surprise, knowing that the DM probably had been turning over every terrible, impossible way this could go wrong in her head all night. 

She crossed her arms and stared at him. "Wonder why." Her voice was forcibly flat as she rolled her eyes, obviously trying her hardest to pretend that nothing was wrong.

Preston's shocked face turned into a soft, understanding smile, and he pat her back gently. "You know it won't be that bad, right?" Even his voice was soft enough to assist in calming her down, especially considering he was usually a pretty loud guy.

"Yeah, I guess, but..." She fumbled with her hands a bit before pulling out her DS, ducking her head down and focusing on it to avoid any further questions. Majora's mask. Nice.  She clicked with her stylus a bit before sighing and continuing. "It's just stupid. We all know how this is gonna go; we're gonna argue and fight, and he's gonna set something on fire, and I'm gonna yell at him. For _four days._ Just the two of us." She accidentally dropped her console onto her bookbag, quickly picking it back up again.

"Well, make an effort, Nerrie, that's all your parents can ask of you. Just try. Okay?"

"Mhm." Nerris nodded listlessly, face buried in the device, a surefire signal she didn't want to talk anymore. Preston hummed lightly, understanding. He leaned over her shoulder, watching her slow down time with that iconic Legend of Zelda ocarina.

* * *

As the final bell rang, Preston and Nerris simultaneously hopped out of their adjacent seats in their Creative Writing class, sharing a mutual grin and high-five. Preston had roped the girl into helping him made a short play based heavily off of a one-shot DnD campaign she made, for a contest. It was going great, _and_ they were getting Fine Art credits for it! Total win-win!

"I just _love_ the character development in act two! God, the _drama,_ Nerris!" The DM winced before turning to  Preston and shushing him. "You have _literally_ no inside voice, Jesus!" The two filtered into the hallway jam-packed with other high school students. Preston waved to other theatre kids he knew, yelling out reminders that practice had been canceled and to go home. Nerris was still a freshman, and basically knew no one except for the kids at the Anime Club, and kept her head down. She didn't like the halls; too many tall people and way too much noise.

Preston, noticing her discomfort, linked arms with her and dragged her towards his locker. He opened it, throwing in unnecessary books, chatting and waving to acquaintances and friends who passed them by. Nerris felt very out of place. Yeah, it was great that her best friend was a junior who helped her get accustomed, but he knew much more people and he just wasn't as _awkward_ as her. It made her feel like some sort of add-on.

As soon as he slammed the door to his locker shut and linked their arms back together, his phone buzzed. Great, more interaction! He beamed as he pulled out his phone, unlocking it and checking to see who sent him the text. Ah, it was Harrison, surprise surprise!

"Aw!" Preston grinned, before shoving his phone in Nerris' face. It was a picture of Harrison in a dingy-looking, ancient bus. Shit, he probably really  _did_ live in the country. He wore a blank, bored expression, and rested his cheek on a gloved fist. One thin eyebrow raised slightly, and clouded olive eyes were lidded as if he were sleepy.

 _One more hour till im @ Satan's!_ Nerris rolled her eyes at the caption. Overdramatic baby. Still, she continued to stare at the picture, noticing more the longer she looked. Like how one side of his best collar was flipped up as if he were rushed to get ready, a theory that was supported by the disheveled state of his thick, slightly poofy hair. She noticed how his outfit was navy blue under dark grey, instead of yellow under black. It made his eyes seem more gold than hazel-green. Not that Nerris _cared_ about the color of his dumb eyes, anyways.

Preston, deeming that she had stared quite long enough, sent a quick text back before sheathing the device in his pocket. Nerris blinked rapidly as if coming out of a trance.

"Gram-Gram's aide can't come pick me up today, sooo.... ride the bus with me?' He made pleading eyes and Nerris groaned. Really, she would have preferred to walk today, maybe to a different state, but who can say no to Preston? She's starting to feel as if this was planned. Dammit, Preston! Sometimes a kid just really needed to run away.

He chattered to her aimlessly as they boarded the bus, seemingly ignoring her miffed facial expression and lack of reply. He tried to show her pictures of cute animals to garner her attention again, with only a small noise of acknowledgment or a nod as a reply as she returned her focus to a  3DS game. 

One or twice, he'd get a video message or picture from Harrison, and he'd reply instantly, chuckling lightly to himself. _N_ _ow_ Nerris looked up, only to frown and look back down again. He looked over, a smirk on his face, and decided to humor her, just a little. He nudged the girl, who looked back up again, feigning annoyance. "What."

"Look!" And he showed her his phone again. This time, she was met with a video instead of a picture. Shaky hands held up a camera outside of the window, recording the segue from the rickety paved road to the highway. This seemed to be a different bus, a bit sleeker and less rachitic. Seriously, why was he taking more than two buses to get to Nerris' place instead of just... getting a ride from his parents?

The camera flipped towards his face, and he looked a bit more tired than before. He flashed a thumbs up. "Just one more bus to go! What are the odds someone will kidnap me or put me out of my misery before I get to her house?" His whispery voice still held it's typical slight accent, and he forced a smile that looked a bit too big for his face. 

After watching, Nerris pushed the phone away from her and made a face, looking back down. You'd have to know her very, _very_ well to notice the subtle tint of red on her cheeks. Luckily, Preston _did_ now her very well, and grinned to himself, pleased.  In return, he snapped a clandestine picture of Nerris as she squinted at her device.

He got a reply mere moments later: _I like her earrings._   Preston chuckled again. Out of all the things to say. Nerris glanced up again. "What's so funny?" 

"Oh, nothing. Just, ya know. Harrison." Nerris narrowed her eyes, suspicious. "Are you talking about me?"

"What? Noo-!!" Before Preston could give some over-the-top denial, Nerris had snatched his phone, causing him to sputter,  his face reddening slightly as she scrolled up.  _Total_ invasion of his privacy. "You traitor! Oh my god, I look so dumb in this, take it back!" She thrust the phone back at her friend, who, admitting defeat, promptly deleted the picture. Maybe she  _was_ a little scary, after all. Or maybe she was just flustered. Preston, blinked, realization sinking in. He didn't even know embarrassment was an emotion Nerris could  _express_ until today. Odd.

 _And now it's gone... did i just hallucinate nerris actually being pretty??_  

"Ohmygod--" Preston turned off his phone and shoved it back into his tote bag, lest Nerris somehow see that reply and throw another hissy fit. She pretended to be too focused on her game to notice.

Preston got off the bus at his street stop, waving a final goodbye to Nerris for the week, receiving only a glare and a nod in return. She could be so  _prickly_ sometimes, but he didn't mind. He'd text her later, after the two got settled in for the weekend, just to see how things were going. Of course, he'd do it under the guise of being "needy," which both magic kids would immediately accept as fact.

And that's why no one ever suspected Preston Goodplay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Neil and Nerris own 3DSes and play games together over the internet after school usually. Becuase who uses the Switch, right??


	4. The Actual Arrival of Harrison, Finally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harrison arrives and takes Nerris' breath away. Nerris talks and takes Harrison's breath away How's this fight gonna go down, anyways?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 4 chapters in and harrison's finally, actually here? yeesh this is gonna be a pretty long fic,,  
> also im sorry if youre from like germany and dont have little debbies cus that wont make any sense to you., its like shitty processed packaged cakes  
> also im a lil busy,, ,things are gonna be slow but also 3 DAY WEEKEND YEET

Nerris unlocked the back door to her house and put on her hat; strict no-hat policies at school prevented her from feeling like the elf wizard she totally was. Immediately feeling better with its secure placement on her head, she opened the screen door and stepped inside. She preferred to enter this way, as it was close to the kitchen and promises of processed snacks.  Today, however, her father stood in the kitchen, watching something in a pot on the stove. 

"Mom's gonna be working late," he said without looking up, "And since you're having company, I decided I'd make manicotti." Nerris beamed. This was a nice change from just heating up kraft macaroni or ramen noodles. Her father was a  _way_ better cook than Little Debbie could ever be. 

"She said to make sure your room is spotless," He continued, finally turning to face her with an amiable smile, "And maybe set up your old laptop, so you can play games over the LAN if you want." Nerris snorted. As if Harrison would play League of Legends or Civilizations with her. Still, she nodded, and closed the door behind her, meandering from the kitchen, heavy bag still in tow. Normally, she would just dump her bookbag in the middle of the living room, only moving it if someone tripped over it or her bird was out of its cage. Now, she stowed it under her bed. 

Her room was filled with figurines, plushies, and official art of characters she liked. It was all very organized-- The DC superheroes and the Marvel superheroes did not go on the same shelf, and cartoons did not mingle with the webcomics. Doctor Who used to have his own separate shelf, but as she grew up, she drifted away from the fandom and stored all that stuff in a drawer. Except for that poster of Clara Oswald. She can stay as long as she wants. 

Her room was usually pretty clean. What's the point of owning all of this merchandise if you just  _carelessly_ throw it around? Some of this stuff is actually worth money or will be worth money in 20 years, and she wanted to make sure it was all in pristine condition. Not even a dust mite could touch some of her more valuable collector's items, much less actual human hands.

After making sure her room was up to her standards, the gaming console in the basement was plugged in and working, and none of her more personal items (like her diary) were in plain and visible sight, she deemed that she'd prepared enough and sat at her desk, busying herself with her homebrew. Her campaign was quickly approaching the climax, but she very well couldn't play  _this_ Sunday. Harrison wouldn't know what was going on and would be really annoying about it. Yet another way that he was ruining her life!!

Soon, however, all thoughts of the boy left her mind as she started working on the falling action of the morally grey adventure, the slow decline to where the heroes realize that their actions did have consequences they'd have to fight through to get home. She was really in the zone, now, so much that she didn't hear someone knocking on the front door. She merely frowned at the unidentifiable distraction and continued typing at a breakneck pace. She was only thrown out of her trance-like writing when, a minute later, the doorbell rang. Surprised, she nearly fell out of her chair.

She saved her work and stood up, but did not move anymore. Nerris  _really_ didn't want to open the door. Anxiety built up in her throat, and she tried to think of an impromptu way to convince her parents not to let him in, even if it was a bit too late for that. Like, what about the fact that he once made another camper vomit up unsanitary magic props? Or the time he crushed a platypus egg in her hat? Nerris had a  _zygote_ in her hair! An actual zygote! Shuddering slightly, she decided she hated Harrison a little more because of it.

Her dad stuck his head in her room, one eyebrow raised at how unsure she looked. "...Hey, c'mon. Let's go welcome your guest, kid." Nerris' small hands made fists as she nodded, taking a deep breath and drawing her cloak around her, before finally moving from the spot she'd felt rooted in for a few minutes. Her father gave her a reassuring smile as she led the way, stomping into the living room and flinging open the front door unceremoniously. 

There Harrison stood, expression unreadable and hand outstretched, as if he were about to knock again. He quickly dropped it, stooping down to pick up the small suitcase he brought with him. His collar was smoothed down, unlike before, and his hat was tilted at an angle on his head. Nerris suddenly became very aware of her appearance. She didn't look good. There is no way in _hell_ she should have let her appearance deteriorate when she knew someone was coming over. She felt like a fish out of water; her mouth was unreasonably dry, and she drew her cape tighter around herself as if that could shield herself from the wave of level 5 insecurities that rushed her.

Her father nudged her gently in the side. Shit, she was  _staring._ "Oh- Hi. Come in. If you want." She forced a dull quality into her voice and she rolled her eyes, just for that extra effect, stepping out of the doorway and moving her arm in a sweeping motion. Harrison walked in, light olive eyes flicking this way at that as he took in his surroundings, only serving to add to  Nerris' odd, self-conscious feeling. He looked at the red shag carpet (outdated and stupid!), and the pictures of a younger Nerris at Gwen and David's wedding on the end table, near the couch. She really should have replaced it with a better picture, like one from homecoming where she actually looked  _good_. He smiled a little bit at the picture as if remembering. She was only eleven at the time, a middle schooler, dressed in floral and holding onto Harrison's hat. She stole it before that, but now it only seemed like a fun memory instead of something that actually stressed him out.

"I like your house." Nerris let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, and absently scrubbed her cheek with her hand.

"Dad, this is, uhm, well, Harrison." She motioned to the boy with a look of distaste. The mentioned boy smiled kindly and waved. "Thank you for having me over, Nerris' dad." It seemed genuine, weird. Nerris crossed her arms and huffed, just to remind her dad that she wasn't going to enjoy this. 

Nerris' house did not have a guest room, but there was a basement. Without another word, she grabbed her guest's bag and stormed to the kitchen, throwing open the door that led down to the basement and beginning her loud passage down her stairs.

"Hey, you should be following me," She called out, not bothering to turn around, "This is where you're gonna stay-"

"I'm right here, Nerris!" The girl yelped a bit and umped at the voice, way closer to her ear than she'd anticipated; she didn't even hear him make any noise at all. 

Nerris turned around to glare at him, barely seeing the light hue of his eyes, only lightly illuminated by the seemingly far-away kitchen lights. "Don't do that," She huffed, before continuing down the steps, vaguely aware now of the stealthy gait of the illusionist behind her. Even when she  _wasn't_ making a point to angrily stomp, he still seemed to move like a shadow, simply materializing into his next step and leaving only a warm presence. It was... weird. 

She flicked on the basement might as soon as she finished her descent. Tacky fluorescent lighting flooded the large room, and Nerris began pointing and listing. "Spare bed. Yours, so put your stuff near it and don't make a mess! Uhm," She turned slightly, angling her body to what looked like a large bookshelf with few shelves that were wide apart, going to point again, "over there is my dad's collection of like, swords and armor for LARP and stuff, and, this is my game system, and those are my collector's comics, and-" 

Harrison accidentally cut her off with a short laugh. She turned to him to glare, and he raised his hands defensively, still chuckling. "Wow, okay. You're, uh, a lot more awkward than I remember." 

"Wh- No I'm not! Shut  _up_ , Harrison!" She shoved him lightly, feeling her face grow warmer, but that odd bit of self-conscious tension that she felt was disappearing quickly as she scowled. He was just Harrison again. For now.

For Harrison, the script was flipped. He somehow did  _not_ hallucinate the intense, electric blue of Nerris' eyes that now crackled with intensity and shone with reflections of the lighting, as if they held a magic similar to Harrison's being. And he didn't just  _imagine_ the way her freckles splashed across her face and the visible part of her arms, like constellations. Stars to match the sky of her eyes. God, he sounded like Preston, waxing poetic about someone he really couldn't stand. Stupid. 

He's lucky that, unlike Nerris, his face did not betray what he felt. However, by the way she looked at him, what she felt hadn't changed since she was nine. Nerris had gone back to discussing the items in the room, telling him what he could touch and what he couldn't.  He nodded long, watching more than he was listening.

She was way more of a talker than a listener, a bit more actress than hostess. She would point to things of her father's, eyes clear and shining; or the in-progress sewing project she had been working on, still in the machine, and her gaze would darken as if thinking how to continue. It was almost as if the clear sky somehow trapped in her mind would be dimmed by clouds blocking an unseen sun--

Fuck. He should really stop with the metal poetry and pay more attention.

"..and that's pretty much everything!" Harrison nodded, feeling a bit out of the lop, and simply watched as Nerris set his suitcase down, smoothly kicking it over to the bed. It knocked into the old metal frame with a sharp _cling._

"Sorry." She was very obviously not sorry. "Okay, so," she breezed on, ignoring the way Harrison rolled his eyes, "We are on a schedule." Nerris had a lot of time to call Nikki and think of chaotic activities that she'd never do on her own. After a pause, she continued.

"Today, we're just you, you know, getting settled in. Learning how to tolerate each other, and Mom said David said we gotta do things he made mandatory, like 'bonding activities.' Which means," another dramatic pause as she looked him in the eye. Harrison felt a chill (genuine fear??) run down his spine.

"A magic fight. No holding back!" It was definitely Nikki's idea, but Nerris couldn't say she wasn't curious. Sure, she bickered with Harrison a lot and accidentally froze him once, but usually, they simply argued about anything and everything. A full-fledged war would _prove_ who the best magic kid was.

"Hey, I thought we were doing this so I wouldn't accidentally kill you?" Because, uh, no offense, but fake Dungeons and Dragons magic doesn't really compare to-"

"That's what _you_ think, Harrison, and your opinion is dumber than your face right now." Ouch, okay, there's the old Nerris. he simply shrugged, a sigh permeating throughout his words, "If that's what you want, Nerris. What about tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, mom's watching us, 'cus dad's going somewhere for a campaign." So it _does_ run in the family. Kind of explains the way her father dressed.

"Mom doesn't do the whole magic thing, but she's cool, I swear. I dunno where she's taking us, she says it's a surprise, so be prepared for _anything!"_ 'Anything' was foreboding. 'Anything' was... kinda ominous. Harrison was not prepared for 'anything.' But cool, whatever. It definitely couldn't be worse than the literal, actual death-match Nerris had planned for tonight.

"And the day after that, Preston's got us tickets to this thing at our high school It's like, a play he directed, I guess. And I wanted to go anyways, so you're coming with me. And then he's coming with us to a carnival, cus his nanna's got a dialysis and he doesn't want to be alone. And the day after _that_ ," She continued with little pause to breathe, "you'll be out of my hair." As if to prove a point, she ran a hand through her hair, the spitting image of a stressed-out teenager.

"Okay." All of that sounded absolutely exhausting to Harrison, except the play part. Seeing his best (and only) friend preform was probably gonna be the highlight of this trip.

"Okay," he repeated, "so where do we fight?" In response, the girl grabbed his wrist and pulled him back up the stairs. Even as surprised and slightly perturbed as he was he moved smoothly, too graceful to be physically walking. They reached the top of the steps, and she released him from her grip, closing the door behind them and leading him to the backyard.

"This is the arena," she announced loudly as she jumped down, off of the porch and into grass. It was unusually warm for a spring evening, but it felt nice. "Grab the box off the patio table and gimme." Harrison did as instructed, tossing her the long rectangular parcel. She cause it with ease and opened it.

"Here, roll for initiative. I'll even let you have a surprise round," She beckoned him down, closing the box once shed locate the D20."Oh, so... we're just doing a DnD battle?" Harrison sounded hopeful. Sure, she'd kick his ass, but at least he couldn't physically harm her.

Nerris smiled, the image of condescension, and leaned forwards to pat his cheek. "Poor, innocent Harrison. No, I'm just establishing turn order." Her grin turned into a glare, and her voice was low. "Roll. The. Die."

Harrison felt another chill, and now he's certain that it's genuine fear.


	5. The Fight (??)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nerris wants to see some of Harrison's powers and disguises it in a hate-fuelled fight. She's a heavy sleeper and her favorite color's dark purple.
> 
> Harrison's scared of his powers, but he's definitely more scared of Nerris. He's an early bird, and he thinks his favorite color is blue. For now.

A hesitant gloved hand reached for the die, a beautiful D20 made out of some sort of black stone. Obsidian, or perhaps Onyx. It shone in the dimming light of outside, and he examined it closely before casting it on the ground, flattening an insignificant patch of grass under its weight. Nerris dropped to the ground to get a look.

"Thirteen. Weak. Okay, my turn." She picked up the die and rolled it again, scoring herself a nineteen. "Sweet! Almost a nat. twenty." She picked up the weighty twenty-sided stone and placed it carefully back in its box with the others.

"I'm gonna ask again, Nerris. What are we _doing?_ " Nerris forcefully shoved him back a few feet before backing up herself. Sometimes she looked and acted taller than she was. Intimidating.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm engaging you in a fight, dummy. Hit me with your best shot!"

to be fair, this wasn't as wild as Harrison expected this excursion to be, but it was still pretty fucking surreal. Everything _about_ Nerris was sorta surreal. She kept things interesting, to say the least.

"Come on! Do some magic. Hit me!" She took a step forward as if she were to shove him again and in a sort of panic, he held his hands out towards her. Flames sprang from his fingertips. Quickly, Nerris ducked behind her cape, and somehow, it didn't dissolve into flames. She didn't get severe third-degree burns on her arms or face or...  _anything._ Seriously, what was that thing made of? Some sort of firefighter-grade material?

She emerged from her cape. "My AC is way higher than that, Harrison! Try harder!" Her voice held a certain snobbish, mocking quality to it- definitely goading him. He took a step forward, feeling his fingers spark with energy. He really shouldn't do any more fire, though; he lucked out with the grass around Nerris being merely singed. Still, being able to release his powers like that made him feel _great._ And Nerris... wasn't scared of him.

The girl's grin was a little crooked as she called out, "I'm readying an action!" She motioned for him to go again This was... actually kind of fun. A bright beam of something formed at the tips of his fingers, and without thinking he shot it at her, who, swift as anything, pulled out a small intricate mirror from the folds of her cloak, and reflected the beam back at Harrison. The boy dove to one side frantically, now fully convinced of Nerris' ability to take care of herself.  The beam seared a small hole in the neighbor's chainlink fence. Maybe Harrison should reign it in a bit. 

The sprightly girl's eyes were wide. "That was super _cool!!_ Do it again! Do it again!" Harrison really couldn't control what powers his hands came up with, but he really tried. Instead of some hyperdense ball of light, he instead procured smoky, blue tendrils of gas, aimed straight for Nerris, who coughed and drew her cape around her nose and mouth.

Nerris was a slight asthmatic, but this gas seemed to be nothing more than some sort of colored water vapor.  Still, she played it off. "Color spray? You fiend!" Her vision was clouded with shades of blue. Pretty, but virtually harmless. It was cool, borderline cold, and would have felt great against the heat of the evening if Nerris weren't usually inherently cold to the touch. The dumb boy couldn't even destroy stuff right. She felt a rush of affection surge to her face, and her cheeks warmed.

"Kids, I don't know what you're doing, but if whatever that is gets near my geraniums, no one's gonna be happy." The two looked over to see Nerris' mother leaning against the fence that separated the front yard from the backyard. She looked worn but happy. A bundle of cloak and converse rushed to meet her parent, who smiled. Nerris jumped into her mother's arms, and her parent swung her around as if she were still a small child; she was certainly thin and small like one. Shortly after setting her down again, Nerris' mother went inside.

Harrison felt a pang. He told himself it was just because he never really saw his parents happy and proud like Nerris' were. She was so lucky and she didn't even know it, another reason why he hated her (most of the time). But he knew there was something more. Something that crept up on him, seizing his nerves and making him cast another spell at his hostess, who promptly dodged, laughing. A large portion of the fence melted down, and the laughter died into awe.

_"That's so cool."_

Once inside, the two received a rather exasperated scolding from Nerris' mother, too tired to even ask what sort of event happened that enabled two adolescents to completely melt down metal material. Harrison tried to make it up to her with a bouquet of flowers he drew from his hat. Her tone immediately changed to doting and gushing until a bee emerged from one of the daisies.  The two women shrieked. Nerris' mother had passed down lethal allergies to bees and wasps and creatures of that nature, and the two waited outside as Nerris' father and Harrison chased down the insect and brought it outside. ("You see what I have to deal with, mom??" It was a _honeybee!_ ")

They all settled in to eat, a relatively painless procedure. Nerris seemed offended that her guest had never had manicotti before. The girl went to retrieve her bird, carrying it on her shoulder and it's cage in her hand as she retired to the basement with Harrison.

They both settled onto the bed, sitting next to each other. Nerris was bouncing up and down as she spoke. "The way you just- fwoosh!" Nerris held out her hands, trying to explain, "Its just super cool! Like Dragon-Ball!" Harrison chuckled shyly, not necessarily getting the reference but enthralled at the way her eyes lit up a pretty periwinkle. They do say lighter eyes change appearance more often due to blood being behind the eyes, but Nerris' were just like a sky. It was absurd.

"Ah, not really.  It's... I'm glad you're not scared, but these, my powers, they're dangerous." Nerris blinked, before rolling her eyes and making a face at him.

"I think it's awesome. Except for the bee, that was shitty. Your magic is too shitty to be dangerous."

"Thought you just said it was awesome." He raised a thin brow, and the sorceress crossed her arms and looked away. '"Or super cool?" He offered the exchange of adjectives with a cocky grin, and she, in return, pushed him off the bed. "You're sleeping on the floor now." As if to prove a point, she burrowed under the covers, reducing her visible form to a pair of glaring eyes and a red-violet puff of hair.  Harrison adjusted himself from his 'I was just pushed' position to a normal sitting one.

The two talked like that for some time, Harrison looked up at the barely visible form of Nerris as, surprisingly, bonding happened. The two talked about everything and nothing, like their favorite colors and genre of music. To their surprise, it felt... nice. Like an unloading of feelings, cleverly masked behind talk about camp and dragons and how the weather was warming up. Small talk for sure, but it was a comfortable area.

Harrison didn't think he could ever get beyond small talk. He would never unload all the gritty  little details of his home life onto anyone, but especially not Nerris. Nerris, who didn't like him. He found himself staring at his gloves as his rival wore herself down, talking about her session with Neil at a steady pace until she suddenly stopped.   Noticing the absense of noise, Harrison glanced up, raising both eyebrows and slowly standing, crossing over the bed and pulling back the covers gently.

The little nerd was asleep on his temporary bed. He sighed, sitting on the edge of the surface and wincing as his weight settled. She looked peaceful when asleep, those beautiful eyes closed. That permanent scowl she seemed to always have on around him faded to a slight downward curve, blissfully indifferent instead of surging with hate. And her eyebrows were not furrowed. She'd left her glasses on.

The magician reached out to remove them from her face before she could roll over and crush them, looking for a solid place to put them. There were a lot of tables and shelves, but unfortunately, they were all covered with LARPing junk Harrison felt belonged in the 'don't touch' part of Nerris' spiel. With a resigned sigh, he set them gently on a pile of books just left of the staircase. _Monster Manual._ Huh. He had no idea what that entailed, For safe measures, he also set her hat over there, which had fallen off of her head. He cast his own cap on the floor near the bed. Great. Where would he sleep now?

He pulled out his phone and started texting Preston.

_She fell asleep where I was supposed 2 can I come over 2 sleep_

He typed deftly, one of his hands ungloved. You cannot type with gloves on, you just can't. He prayed Preston was still up. He stared at his own fingers while waiting for a reply, frowning.

_No just sleep on the floor or smth or.... hear me out.... next to her like a normal person_

_I cant' do that?? she'd kill me wym????_

_Hon, I promise it's only weird if you make it weird. make an effort to be her friend ad shell reciprocate! dont text me again its 1am xoxoxo_

Harrison sighed. Preston never had this kind of issue with anyone. He could kiss someone and somehow, everyone would know it was chaste and platonic. He's just that sort of person. Sometimes Harrison wishes he could be like that. Not quite so exaggerated in his emotions, but able to feel something other than... whatever it is he usually felt. He didn't know what to call that emotion.

He settled in next to Nerris and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the next three days and sorting out the sea and the sky from Nerris' eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nerris' cape is lined with material similar to a fire blanket. Her father got it for her because he takes LARPing really goddamn seriously.


	6. Irrational

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nerris' fear seems really irrational to Harrison, and it seems like everyone knows something he doesn't about his rival/friend. 
> 
> He still doesn't know whats bothering her, but whatever it is, he (jokingly) promised to protect her from it. So he guesses he will.

Harrison doesn't know how he fell asleep, but he woke up shaking. He felt nauseous, and shook his head wildly, rousing himself from what felt like a nightmare he couldn't exactly remember. Just bits and pieces, words from recent memories he'd rather forget. It took him awhile to notice the cool presence at his side and arms wrapped around his waist. As soon as he did, he jumped, alarmed.

"WHAT THe hell..." He quieted when he realized it was Nerris. Disgruntled, but not in a mood to deal with her quite yet, he attempted to wriggle himself free from her arms but stopped as he felt her move in her sleep. Not wanting her to stir, he accepted his fate, settling back down and reaching for his phone, which he'd dropped beside him. 5:17 am. Too early to be up in the city, but Harrison's body clock didn't agree. Early morning is when the chores started. He tossed his phone back down.

He couldn't help but revel in the comforting cool of the girl at his side. This was weird, but definitely not the weirdest event of the last 24 hours. Harrison wasn't against it. it was dark down here. Someone must have come down and turned off the lights-

Harrison's face flared. _Don't make this weird._ He closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep again, but that was easier said than done. He kept thinking about that damned morning.

His mother, collapsed by the pier, hands clasped together tightly as she mumbled. Praying for help. Hoping that Jesus would save her poor son. Not Harrison. God, no.  Ask anyone in the small town Harrison grew up in and they would tell you; the boy was Satan. He couldn't be healed, even by the divine will of God. No, she was praying for the son she "lost." Her hair was damp and stringy and clumped together by saltwater spray, indistinguishable from the tears the slid down her cheeks. As the years went on, the woman began to look more fragile. her hair lost volume, her skin lost color and warmth and vibrancy until she was nothing more than a pallor-stricken depressed mother, teetering the fine line between living and death.

Sometimes, Harrison sat with her, not saying anything at all as his mother rocked and prayed, but not that time. That time, he was waved away by the screaming woman, who looked to be at her very worst in the dim light of early dawn, fear filling the normally dull glare of her eyes. That time, his father was a hero, barely stopping her from cascading into the sea with the force of her shaking. If no one had been there, she would have been dead.

If Harrison had been there, would she trust him again?

The two blamed their son. Their son, who they were so happy to be rid of for a few days, despite his adamant protests that he didn't _like_ Nerris.

_If you hate her so much, why don't you just pull another vanishing act, Harry!_

How those words made him wince as if he'd been punched. He didn't mean to do what he did. He would swear it if that's what it took. His hands itched. He'd been angrier then, when  _it_ happened, hypervigilant and self-righteous. He didn't need saving, divine or otherwise, despite his mother's prayer. He felt he deserved those feelings, but lately, it was getting hard to _feel_ them.  And if he didn't have those feelings, he didn't know what he had.

Nerris shifted beside him, and he looked over again.  She'd somehow gotten completely tangled up in her cape during the night; she was swaddled in it like an infant.  The boy sighed, letting those intrusive thoughts leave his mind momentarily. Gross, she drooled in her sleep. He smiled, one of his hands reaching over to comb through her hair without thinking about it really. The strands were really curly and soft, but it was hard to work his hand through it. She really needed to brush her hair more often.

"Heavy sleeper," He mumbled under his breath, to no one in particular. Harrison guesses that his rival, the girl he's so terrified of interacting with, slept hugging some sort of stuffed animal. That's honestly so _Nerris_ that he wondered why he expected anything different.  At least she didn't snore. She curled into his side, and her head butted against his hand gently. He couldn't keep the smile off his face.

_I know you're up. How's weekend going!_

Harrison's phone buzzed him back into reality, and he checked it immediately. His smile sloped to a confused frown- Preston only got four hours of sleep? That couldn't be good for him. Of course, he wouldn't listen if Harrison told him to take it easy, so he didn't bother with it. Besides, if Preston's coffee habits were as infamous as he made them out to be, he'd be fine. It felt nice that Preston was usually to keep him company, personal sleep habits aside.

The girl next to him shifted slightly, and the smile was back. He guesses Nerris is a universal constant of her own. Even if it wasn't, y'know, necessarily a good one.

_shes sleeping on me._

 

 

Nerris soon began to stir, way past the time her guest would normally get up. Harrison began to panic quietly, sending Preston a quick goodbye message and casting his phone to the side. _Don't make this weird._ He prepared himself to be charming. The girl sleepily removed her arms from around him to rub her eyes, slowly pulling herself to a sitting position and yawning quietly. She looked... ethereal.

She slowly detangled herself from the blankets, almost rolling off the bed in the process and standing slowly, still in the rumpled clothes of the day prior. She didn't acknowledge Harrison at all as she looked around for her glasses, throwing the covers off the bed in her pursuit, before dropping to look under the bed. Finally, Harrison stood, retrieving the glasses from their location atop the books and handing them to her.

She slid them on her face and frowned, peering up at him. "You're not the first thing I wanna see in the morning."

Harrison snorted, his cheeks an odd shade of pink as Nerris grabbed onto his arm and pulled herself up to a standing position. "Uhm. One, I wasn't. two, I'm like, the first thing you see in the morning every day at camp."

Nerris held up a finger. "Shh. Shut up. Too early. Go." She waved her arms languidly, towards the stairs.

"What? It's nine. You go." He pointed up the stairs, and Nerris blinked, evidently just remember that she was in her own basement. She made a face and bounded up the stairs, grabbing her hat along the way and leaving Harrison alone.

Well, that was way less painful than what he was imagining. It felt like the ghost of her arms was still around him, and he sat on the bed, new feelings springing from his chest.

 

An hour later, they were both in a car. Harrison had evidently never been in a station wagon before, and his hostess had to help him buckle in. She shook her head, muttering that he was hopeless and stupid and he should have learned to buckle in ages ago.

Nerris looked a bit more put together than she did before. She could run her hand through her hair without the fingers getting hopelessly tangled, which she did rapidly. She drew her cloak around her, a light purple variant of what she usually wore, and seemed to be pretty agitated without her DS to keep her company. Her mother didn't even let her drown out the surrounding conversation  (and subsequent embarrassment) with headphones. She had to suffer there.

Realistically, being in a car with both her mother (who liked to ask questions about how Nerris was like at camp) and Harrison (who liked to answer questions about how Nerris was like at camp) was driving her crazy. Hr face was warm with embarrassment as Harrison told her mother of the time Nerris organised a DnD game at camp, and made up an entire story arc where they ended up getting along for a whole of five minutes before Nerris pushed him into a kiddy pool filled with pudding, which she had insisted was supposed to be lava.

"I was _nine!_ " She buried her face in her her cape as her mother laughed a little, turning onto the highway and picking up the pace. Harrison eyes widened, obviously a bit spooked. He grabbed onto Nerris' wrist, causing the girl to freeze.

"Who's embarrassing now? At least I'm not afraid of a _car_." Her smile was a little smug as he wrenched his hand away. "I am _not."_

They bickered for awhile as the sorceress' mother turned onto a familiar exit. The girl froze mid-sentence and turned to face forwards again, a familiar sinking feeling of dread settling in her stomach. A feeling she couldn't drown out with music or videogames. Harrison noticed the sudden change in her demeanor and teased her about it. It was a serviceable distraction, and she turned towards him and reminded him he was scared of driving down a highway.

"Well, I don't really know what she's like in her element," her mother went on, sending her daughter a small smile with the top view mirror, "But it's good to see her being active! She's nothing short of shy at school-"

"No, I'm not," Nerris interjected at the same time Harrison asked, "Really?" She sank in her seat and crossed her arms.

The boy snorted. "Well, in 'her element,' she's- well," He began to stammer as Nerris turned to glare at him. "She's.... interesting." That's as close to the truth he could get without being maimed.

"That's... definitely a word for it," Her mother replied as she turned another corner. The familiarity of the route caused Nerris' throat and stomach to feel tight as if she were tensing muscles she didn't know she had. "Mom."

"What? That's a good thing, hon, not everyone is as interesting-"

"If you're taking us where I think you're taking us, I am not leaving this car!" Her voice raised in pitch as she curled in on herself in the back seat of the station wagon, peering out at the word as if it were something scary. Her mother sighed as if she expected this reaction and kept driving, offering up no comment. The car slowed, heading towards some sort of plaza.  Behind the stormy blue of Nerris' eyes, she contemplated rolling out of the vehicle, Garnet Style.

Harrison fought back some sort of smirk. Whatever this place was, it freaked the hell out of Nerris. Which meant that it was something lame and fake, like a haunted house, he now had unlimited ammo to use against her.

"Stop making that face!"  Nerris hit him on the shoulder, just enough for it to smart for a while. "See what I have to deal with, ma'am?"  That earned him another punch, but Norris did seem to unfurl from herself.

"Don't worry, Nerris, I'll protect you from whatever dumb nonsense is scaring you!" she just glared at that one, but her shoulders lowered substantially, and she stuck her tongue out at him. He smiled, a quick, involuntary flex of the face that, honest to god,  felt so foreign that it startled him. He doesn't remember the last time he genuinely _smiled_  at someone who could see him. Not a smirk or a nervous twitch or anything like that, but a sincere smile. Happiness was a foreign concept.

The car stopped in front of the plaza. "We're here." Nerris just scowled up at the building they were in front of, crossing her arms. "I'm not going in."

Harrison had never been in one, but he didn't know what was so terrifying abut a roller rink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quick transition chapter so we can delve into that tragic backstory boiiiii


	7. Blame It On The Girls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nerris starts acting strange and, despite what he wants to believe, it's up to Harrison to get to the source of her negative feelings about the rink. 
> 
> He didn't expect her to start crying.

It took a while to actually get Nerris inside. She didn't throw a fit, per se, she just kept repeating to her mother that she was  _done_ with this place and she didn't  _want_ to go here anymore. Her parent was just as stubborn and she managed to get her child out of the car and inside despite the constant complaining, an already emotionally exhausted Harrison following. He was officially in foreign territory.

Inside, shoes were paid for and Nerris' mother taught Harrison how to strap on the shoes. He stumbled a few times, grabbing onto whatever he could (the edges of tables and chairs, mostly), and pulling himself forwards before he could fall over. Nerris just carried her shoes as she stomped off to sulk in the corner by the arcade games. Harrison trailed behind her like some sort of lost puppy, sitting on the floor beside her. She leaned on the wall and started at the rink with as much contempt as one would watch a cockroach in their dinner. 

Harrison still didn't get what was so upsetting about it. Loud, slightly distorted music blared from cheap speakers, and multicolored light spun over the rink.  It looked- dare Harrison think it-  _fun_ , even if he didn't know how to skate. 

"Come on. I kind of actually want to go out there." Nerris just shook her head, casting him an annoyed glare and disregarding his statement with a simple scoff. He didn't want to go out alone and make a fool of himself, so he sat there, humming to the parts of the current song that he knew, feeling more uncomfortable by the second.

Nerris dropped her shoes and crossed her arms, her shoulders hunched up. She looked downright grouchy, and Harrison felt the overwhelming urge to smooth down her brows and wipe the worry from her face. After a few minutes, he tried again. "Just one song. Please?" He pressed his hands together, having resorted to begging after the first few songs. They had been _bops,_ and he really wanted to get up and do something.

"How many times do I have to say no, dummy? Go ask my mom." Her voice was laced with scorn, and she didn't even look at him, instead scanning the rink with abandon, blue eyes flicking back and forth as if watching an intense tennis match. Every intense emotion in her gaze was on display for the entire world to see, and she didn't care. What was it like to live like that?

"I didn't come here to get to know your mom." The silence from Nerris felt deafening, even as music blared and skaters laughed and chatted both on the rink and off.

Finally, she spoke. "One song, After this one. That's _it_ , Harrison, do you hear me?' He nodded, figuring he could learn how to skate by one song. Nerris stooped down, going to strap on her skates.

"Wait, wait, help me up." Harrison held up a hand once she had her skates on. The girl rolled her eyes and pushed up her glasses, before grabbing his hand and hoisting him up. He grabbed onto her shoulders to keep from falling down again. She led him out to the rink by the time the next song started. It was some early 2000s song that he'd heard before but didn't know well. He struggled to get his footing, skittering and tripping a few times as Nerris glided effortlessly. A reverse of role, for once on their lives.

She dragged him to the railing installed on one side of the rink for beginners. "Hold on." Her voice was still irritable. Harrison did as instructed, holding on and pushing himself forwards. She turned around, kind of skating backward, observing him with an odd expression; half irritated and half amused at how he fumbled around like an idiot.

"Hey, that's impressive. Why do you hate something you're good at?" Nerris raised an eyebrow, the slight tilt of her lips indicating she found his question to be a joke. His expression didn't waver as he pulled himself along, and he met her gaze, resolute. her grin quickly faltered, but she turned back around to hide it.

"And why should I tell _you?_ " Her voice was haughty, hiding the small tremor of worry in fake throes of confidence. He thought about it for a moment, only to find he didn't think he had an answer for her. They made their way around the rink once, and Harrison tried to let go of the railing, holding his hands out to the side for balance.

The song ended, and Nerris made an attempt to skate past him, off the rink. He grabbed onto her cloak, pulling himself along with her. Giving an aggravated sigh, she yanked the fabric away, turning so he felt the force of her withering gaze. "Why."

"Because you can't tell your mom for some reason. You're scared to, and I _know_ you aren't scared of my opinion, because you know I don't lie, especially not to you, and not about whatever stupid thing's making you upset." Harrison hated seeing her seriously upset. He was starting to lose his footing again, but Nerris grabbed his arm before he could trip.

"You suck. Keep up, Harrison." Her voice was quiet, lacking the usual smug tone she usually said something like that to him. She pulled him along, the hand on his wrist more gentle than before. "I just- I have bad memories here."

"What sort of-"

"If you _shut up_ , I'll tell you!" He quieted, and after a moment, she attempted to choke out a bit of a sentence. "I- I'm not- I..."She sputtered for a while, before pulling up her hood again and hiding her face with it.

Harrison was about to make some sort of remark when she spoke. "I'm transgender."

He blinked. That's not quite what he was expecting. Without waiting for a reply, she went on at a breakneck pace. "I've known since I was five, even if I didn't know that there was a word for it. I told my parents how I felt when I was seven. She- my mom was so _happy_ to have a little girl. She bought me dresses and dolls and let me wear what I wanted and, you know, told my school." She huffed a breath, and her eyes were a little glazed as if she were stuck in some memory. "I couldn't use the boy's bathroom or the girl's one, so I just.. didn't. One of the teachers let me use the faculty bathroom. She was really nice."

Harrison waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts. She seemed to be fighting down her anger. "She signed me up for dance." She gave a small snort. "I didn't have an interest in dance. I didn't want to be _girly._ I just wanted to be a girl. I still liked things like Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: The Gathering, but- It felt like too much. I just liked being around my dad. He didn't treat me any different, you know? One of the _gods_ in DnD doesn't even have a gender." Her tone lightened a bit as if just thinking about the game made her happier. "And she took me skating every Saturday." She motioned around the rink.

"Once, some girls from my school were there. five of 'em, I think, and they kept looking at me. They still saw me as a boy, and the thought of me being _good_ at something like this was so _fucking funny_ to them." Her grip on his wrist tightened."So funny, isn't it? 'Cus I  was just... a boy. And one day, I just wasn't. That's the punchline." Harrison's heart wrenched at the way her shoulders shook, and her words felt like icicles, piercing his heart and melting without a trace.

"An at school? It became a goddamned running gag. All through middle school. It stopped once I entered high school because Preston _made_ them stop. Well, he thought he did, anyway. You know, he can't always be there to cast support spells for me, and when he isn't, I still get... bullied." Her voice flatlined on the last word, and Harrison at once knew it was much more than bullying. 

"And I still get looks, you know? And I blame... this place. And my mom." She rushed out that last part as if she couldn't say it otherwise. The boy was at a loss for words. He didn't know what to say. He didn't know if there was anything to say.

"That's... I'm sorry, Nerris. That's... kinda messed up." No shit. He expected some sort of retort from her, but she turned her face away and offered up nothing but a light sigh. "Okay, yeah.  Really messed up. But I don't think you can blame your mom for just trying to support you-"

"I know!" She sounded choked as if fighting back her frustration. "But I _need_ to- it feels great to blame someone!" Harrison was getting the hang of skating, and move to clumsily glide aside Nerris. Her cheeks were shiny with tears. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, then moved her arm up to her face, wiping at it aggressively, as if her crying was the source of all her problems. Her eyes looked diluted, lacking the electricity and spark that made Nerris herself. "I really hate being here," she whispered, and her hands were cold.

Harrison didn't know when their hands met, or even who made them meet, but he ran his thumb along her knuckles. "I understand that," and he really did, "But... blame this place, okay? You can do that. And you can blame those girls. But not your mom, Nerris." She was shaking, and Harrison's eyes widened to hear her stifling sobs.

"Hey- C'mon Nerris, don't cry. Please. Look at me." Her hand was covering her mouth, and her eyes, previously cast towards the floor turned to look at him pensively.

Eyes are the windows to the soul, and what Harrison saw in Nerris' soul made his heart break.

Slowly, the boy led his friend off the rink, murmuring quiet affirmations that she was going to be okay. He stumbled as rink transitioned into outdated arcade carpet. She caught him by his arm and hoisted him up. Suddenly, she was leading him, silent and nervous, not knowing where to go.

"Let's go sit down, yeah?" His voice was soft as if he were scared of breaking Nerris with it. She nodded silently, still covering her mouth and trying her hardest not to cry. he led her to the nearest seat he could find; one of those old arcade racing game machines with the leaned back seats. She pat the seat next to her, prompting Harrison to sit. The girl looked pensive, as if she wanted to say something, but then squeezed her eyes shut. A quiet sob wracked her body, and she seemed to curl in on herself. Harrison, unsure of what to do, just opened his arms. She leaned into him, hiding her face on the front of his vest and letting herself cry. They must have been a sight, but they weren't worried about that right now.

After a few minutes, she seemed to calm down a little. She stopped shaking quite as much, and crying turned into sniffling. "Sorry." she murmured, eyes downcast. "Thinking about all that just makes me  pissed, and I- I just cry when I get frustrated, so, you know-"

"Nerris." Harrison's voice cut through her ramblings, and she looked up at him. "It's okay to say that you're sad. You _deserve_ to be sad." She offered up a small, tired-looking frown, prompting a confused expression from her friend. "What?"

"Promise not to treat me any different. Like... don't do what you're doing right now. It's weird." The boy pretended to be offended, fiddling absently with the controls of the arcade game.

"Wow, okay. Sorry for caring about you. Won't happen again, I swear." Nerris socked him on the arm lightly, making a face.

"Smartass."

"Dumbass," He retorted, causing his friend to crack a shy grin. She adjusted her cloak a bit, pushing the hood back from her head, a surefire sign she felt a little better, almost ready to face the world with boundless energy and references to obscure tabletop games.

She motioned to the machine. "I think I'm done with skating, so," Her voice was nervous, as if fully expecting rejection, "Wanna play?" Harrison shook his head, motioning to his clothes. "I don't have any money, Nerris."

"Idiot. Do you actually need to be reminded that you can pull literally anything out of that dumb Lincoln hat of yours?" At least her confidence seemed to mostly be restored.

Realization struck. "Oh my gosh."

 

By the time Nerris' mom came around to check on them, they'd played almost every game available. Nerris won seven; Harrison won one. The girl had been seriously impressed at his understanding of patterns in Pac-Man, and then proceeded to kick his ass in Space Invaders. Harrison suspected she let him win on purpose, before remembering it was Nerris, and she'd never do something like that ever.

"Okay, you two, five minutes." She held up five fingers, her usual wary smile on her face. Nerris really got her smile from her father; an overzealous grin, laced with mischief. it was a smile you liked, even if you didn't fully trust the motive behind it. 

"'Kay!" Nerris' smile faltered a bit, looking back at Harrison, who nodded, and then up at her mom. "Uhm, can I- Can we talk about something, mom?"

Nerris ended up spilling everything she'd kept from her mom regarding the rink on the way out the door and to the car, abut how she _really_ like going to the rink before, but then something happened, and she's sorry she can't find much enjoyment in it now, but maybe she'll be at the point where she can soon. She sounded _mature,_ and not like the bickering, whining girl that Harrison had grown to love. Maybe that's why her mother listened to the ramblings of her daughter, nodded, and seemed to appraise her daughter's input.

"Hon, I wish you'd told me before," Her mother spoke thoughtfully as she revved the car's engine, carefully picking out each word as she backed out of the parking lot "And I understand that must have been... difficult, even to talk about, but- You can talk to me about anything okay?" She paused. "Unless it's about one of your games. That's- talk to your dad about that." She shook her head as her daughter leaned over to strap Harrison in, the teenager mumbling that he  _seriously_ needed to learn ad it wasn't that hard. 

"Okay. Sorry, Mom, and thanks. I love you." The words sounded so foreign coming from Nerris. Up until today, Harrison didn't even know she had the  _capacity_ to feel sad, but she seemed to bounce back relatively quickly. He tried to keep his mood up at the sight. She was happy, and that made him happy, even if he couldn't ever attain that same happiness himself. He leaned back in his seat, watching cars and people and builds go by. He felt as if he were in his own bubble of silence, even as the other two switched topics from school to something lighter, not wanting to perturb their guest with buried past events.

He stayed in that ethereal bubble until Nerris popped it by grabbing onto his arm and murmuring "thank you," before raising her voice a few notches. "I take it you've _been_ to a restaurant at least once in your life, right?" The boy nodded slowly, mystified by the prolonged contact of her small hand on his arm. The idea of physical touch without obvious purpose confused him unless it was Preston. He was just... like that.

"Okay, good. You're not completely hopeless, then." She detached herself, settling back down in her seat, unable to keep the small smile off her face. Her eyes were a little red from her crying, and she looked exhausted, more than usual, but she still looked really pretty. 

Wait...

Love?

Harrison must be mistaken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> idk not related but Shut Up and Dance is such a nerrison song


	8. An Emotional Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harrison opens up a bit more about his relationship with his family. Nerris grows protective, and her new friend's catching feelings really quick.

Applebees. Okay, not the worst choice. Just not the best.  
  
"What do you want?" Nerris folded open Harrison's menu for him, as if he were some Neanderthal that had never been out in public before. If that's what she was thinking, she wouldn't be entirely wrong. It had been a long time since Harrison was around other people who tolerated his presence.  
  
The boy shrugged. "Dunno." In truth, he wasn't necessarily hungry. He'd just eaten less than a day ago, but he didn't want anyone getting concerned, so he just pointed to something random on the menu and hoped for the best. Soon after they'd all ordered, Nerris' mother spotted someone she seemed to know and was promptly waved over. Worry lined her features, coupled with a weary frown, and she excused herself, ruffling her daughter's hair before leaving the kids alone.  
  
They sat in comfortable silence for a moment, Nerris' smile illuminating the room more than the tasteful warm lighting, at least to Harrison. They were sitting next to each other, despite being in a booth. That's a dating faux pas, but when it's a learn-not-to-kill-each-other date, it seemed appropriate.  
  
"Well," Harrison began, "That seemed to go okay-" Abruptly, Nerris threw her arms around him, squeezing him in a way too tight hug.  
  
"She understands! She understood me! Thank you so much!" Harrison's brain stuttered and froze like it was running some outdated version of Windows. As soon as he'd managed to process what happened, she pulled away, looking down. "I mean, you know, you're not completely dumb, I guess."  She punched him on the arm lightly, that radiant smile still on her face. "Definitely gained some XP for that one."  
  
"Well, you- uh- you have a reasonable mom." Nerris nodded, her expression growing serious. Her eyes grew stormy, and she crossed her arms.  
  
"I saw yours on parent's day, all those years ago. She's... I don't really like her. Why's she so mean to you?" Harrison remembered that day and personally commemorated it as the first time Nerris had been nice to him. She'd made a face at his mother behind her back, which made him mad. Back then, he'd still felt a need to protect his parents. Nerris had introduced him to her parents for the first time, and they'd watched all the children present their talents on stage together, side by side.   They'd both winced at Preston's mistake of a play together; no one deserved to see that. She'd even given him a Pokemon card, which he's sure he's lost by now.  
  
"Hey! Alien! I said something." Nerris snapped her fingers at his face, aggravated. "Why's she so mean to you?"  
  
"Huh? Oh!" He scowled as Nerris mimicked his surprised face. "Mock me again and I won't say a word."  
  
"Wh- That's what I- Ugh! _Fine!_ " Using her own tactics against her got her to quiet down, but she still glared at him and motioned for him to go on.  
  
He took his time anyways, formulating words in his brain and drumming gloved fingers on the table lightly. "Mom- well, she thinks I... made my brother disappear." He continued, ignoring the way Nerris' eyes widened and she opened her mouth as if to say something. "I guess I did? I was mad at him, and he asked to, you know, see one of my tricks, and I just..." He made a vague gesture with his hands, and smoke rose from his fingertips. "Poof. And they've hated me ever since."  
  
Silence. Harrison thinks he may have said too much, that Nerris must see him the way his parents see him, as a freak, a mistake, a killer. He doesn't know if his brother is actually dead, he just knows he can't pull him out of a hat or from behind a curtain. He's certainly tried more times than he can count.  
  
"...That takes a lot to admit, Harrison. It's messed up, yeah, really messed up, like, _mega_ messed up, but... Thanks for telling me."  He nodded, silent, trying to swallow past the feeling he suddenly got in his throat.  
  
"I mean, I want to leave. I want to just hop on a bus and never go back home, but where would I go? I can't make a house and loving parents just magically appear." He spat out his words bitterly, eyes trailing away from the sudden compassion in his friend's eyes to the ceiling, the floor, anywhere else. He didn't deserve compassion. Nerris should really stop being so nice to him, now that she knows what he did.  
  
A less comfortable silence fell over them. Nerris, not knowing what to say, fidgeted with the aglets on the end of the strings on her cape. A waiter soon came by with what they'd ordered, alleviating social pressures slightly with his mere presence.  
  
"Thank you!" Nerris nudged Harrison sharply in his side, prompting him to squeak out a late "Thanks!" as the waiter walked away. No one moved to eat for a second.  
  
The sorceress exhaled heavily. "Well, you can't go anywhere yet. Magic or no magic, you'd probably die. You just aren't leveled enough to handle like, the child trafficking business, and also homelessness and general starvation." Yeah, that was fair. She picked up her fork, poking at the extravagant looking salad she'd gotten. "And you can't die on me, dummy, okay? Preston had this kind of problem- Well, obviously not just like this, I'm not trying to compare- But he had this problem with his parents not being around, so he's probably better at comforting than me."  
  
Harrison nodded. He knew about Preston's situation, but could never unload like that on the theatre kid. He's got more than enough on his plate as is, and Harrison didn't want to add any more to his woes. Nerris, noticing his expression, leaned over, hitting his arm lightly.  
  
"I'm serious. You know how he is. He's a petty dumb kid who lives for drama. He'd want to know." Well, okay, she had a point. He was a bit of a control freak on top of that, too.  
  
"For now, all I can say is don't run away. Preston would miss you."  She stabbed a piece of lettuce with her fork. "How's homeschool? Looking at colleges?" What a topic switch. Feeling a bit miffed, Harrison shrugged. "School's okay. I can't wait to go to college. But I dunno where I want to go."  
  
"Go to college with me." She forced her voice into a neutral tone as she popped a piece of salad into her mouth.  
  
That definitely caught the boy off guard, and he played it off with a scoff. "Hah! As if. You'd get on my last nerve. We're not even in the same grade." Harrison rolled his eyes and picked at what he ordered Looked like... breaded sticks. He should have looked closer at the menu.  
  
She took one from his plate, waving it around as she spoke. "You wait up for me and we'll go together. Preston's gonna go with us, too. He wanted to do like, community theatre for a few years anyway. We're gonna go to Reed." She spoke matter-of-factly, as if she knew she as gonna get in. Reed was a liberal art's college, perfect for Preston. "What do you even want to do for a job? And don't say magic, or I'm gonna punch you in the face."  
  
He winced. "Dunno. Never really thought about it." He knows it's a little pathetic to be this close to graduation and not know what he wants to do yet, and her face revealed that's exactly what she thought, too.  
  
"You could totally be like, in performing arts. Or like, a teacher. Nikki thought you were a cool mentor." She bit off the end of the stick, snickering lightly at his bewildered expression. "Mozzarella, idiot. I dunno what I want to do either. As long as I can play DnD, I don't think I care. Maybe like, anthropology? That sounds fun. The Middle Ages was completely cool." Harrison never pegged her as the type to like history, not at all.  
  
"Maybe I'll study it with you. Being a curator wouldn't be too bad." He didn't know if he actually meant it, but it's a nice idea to entertain. And he _does_ feel a little better.  
  
The two talked about what college would be like, Nerris relying on stories from her mom, and Harrison relying on his imagination. He would be the first person in his family to go to college, which Nerris said opened him up to a lot of scholarship situations. She sounded impressed.  Nerris' mother came back, putting a hold on their conversation and apologized for being absent. She looked a little frazzled, but not unhappy.  
  
She ran her fingers through her hair. "Hey, hon, you've barely eaten." Harrison raised his eyebrows at being called 'hon,' but decided he didn't hate it. Before he could start speaking, the woman sighed and turned to her daughter. "Nerris, you know, maybe if you weren't eating his food for him, he may feel more welcome-"  
  
"What? It's not like he's eating it And they're good! I'm just human, mom!" Harrison realizes he hasn't gotten a word in edgewise in a conversation based on his eating habits. "Actually, uhm, Miss, I just-- I don't really like it that much." His voice was a kind of mumble, but he didn't look down or fidget or do any sort of anxious gesture, which he was a little proud of.  
  
"Why would you order something you don't like?" Harrison just shrugged as a reply, and the woman exchanged glances with her daughter, bemused. Nerris looked more annoyed.  
  
"Sorry, uh, you're gonna have to go home now. No friend of mine can hate mozzarella sticks. It's mandatory and compulsory." Nerris made a shooing motion with her hands, and  Harrison rolled his eyes.  
  
"Well, no friend of mine can be a nerd and spend half  their life playing a dumb tabletop game." Nerris looked like she was going to punch him in the arm again, but refrained. The two kids exchanged a grin, joking in a way teens did and adults didn't quite understand.  
  
"Okay, Nerrie, hon, if you're finished,  I gotta take you two home. They really need me at the hospital, a new patient just came in and it doesn't look too good. Don't break anything when I'm gone, okay?"

Fuckin' dark.  
 

* * *

  
   
Nerris fell asleep during the car ride back to her house. Her head lolled to the side, encased in the hood her cape. She leaned against the cool window, not stirring, even as the car rolled to a stop. She looked so peaceful that he didn't want to bother her, but her mother seemed to really need to go. He gently jostled her shoulder, effectively shaking her into awareness.  
  
He helped her out of the car as her mother waved, speeding away pretty quickly. The sleepy girl leaned against Harrison's chest, and he realized just how much taller he was than her. When she was up and yelling, she seemed much taller. She drew her cloak around herself, rightened her posture, and stepped inside her house. Harrison follows closely behind in case she tripped and fell in the glow of early evening. If wasn't too late, but she seemed exhausted.d Harrison let pretty spent, too. It was an emotional day.  
  
"Well, if it isn't Nerris the Cute!" The girl's dad, reading something by the living room light, looked up as soon as his daughter stepped in, putting down his tablet. His grin was broad, and she walked over to him, basically falling on him and giving him a hug before vaguely motioning to the kitchen.  
  
"Harry  needs food." Harrison's heart pretty much fell out of his chest at the nickname. He's completely emotionally spent, and sputtered out, "No, I'm okay, I ate yesterday, and the day before that, so, you know." The other two gave him looks, Nerris' bordering on venomous and her father's slightly concerned.  
  
He immediately knew that was the wrong thing to say, just as he suspected, and tried to discredit it with an awkward laugh. Nerris rolled her eyes and grabbed his wrist, pulling him away. "Bye, dad. Come on, Harrison."  Her step had some storm in it, and she seemed very upset by something. She was volatile like this, and Harrison learned from years of experience not to start a conversation when she was in this state unless he wanted to get completely smoked by her stinging comments.  
  
The kitchen was pretty large, at least, to Harrison it was. Minimalist. Dark granite countertops artfully hid white painted wooden cabinets, which Nerris began opening, rifling around in them. Her body moved listlessly as she stooped over, but her face was still angry. Her eyebrows were drawn together almost comically, and he mouth was pulled into a very aggressively frown. Se pulled out few packages from the cabinets, sifting around until she found a plastic bag to place them in. She turned around, setting the bag on the table before leaning up, stretching to reach the cabinets that were taller than her. Harrison looked on, mystified. "What are you-"  
  
"If your parents actually don't feed you, you're gonna need me as back-up." Her voice was curt, and he realized the venom in her gaze was meant for his parents. Her eyes were practically sparking, some shade of electric cobalt. She put a few more packages in the bag and tired it closed. "I'll, I dunno mail you something every month. Like, SnackCrate or NatureBox or something."  
  
"Uh- I don't really know what those- Nerris, you don't need to-" The girl thrust a package of popcorn into the microwave with enough aggression to possibly rip it. She started the machine, the beeping giving Harrison a slight startle.  
  
She pulled open the fridge, pouring out a cup of water and handing it to him. "Shut up, stupid. It's literally the least I can do." She sat at one of the island countertops,  motioning for him to sit beside her. He did so, unsure of really what to do. He really didn't want her to be pissed at him. He took a small sip of water, feeling more like a burden than anything.  
  
The microwaved beeped again after a few minutes of silence, and Nerris jumped to receive the parcel, opening it and letting it cool for a few seconds before handing it over and leaving the room. He nervously ate a few pieces, wincing at how hot it was. His house didn't have a microwave, but he knew how they worked. It was still kind of a marvel. He could never be a scientist, let alone wrap his head on how all of this worked. It was just like magic.  
  
Harrison didn't even notice when his friend came back until she tossed a device on the table. He jumped, and she laughed lightly. "Here. It's my DS. You can play with it, I guess.  I'm way too tired to entertain you right now." He'd noticed. She sat down again, nestling herself in the folds of her cloak and putting her head down.  
  
"You know, they don't have a right to do that. What you did was shitty, but they're still your parents. They still have to like, feed you, even if they don't like you. They still have to be fucking parents. I get it if you don't want to talk about it, though." Her tone was quiet, and he nodded despite himself.  
  
"Thanks, Nerris."  
  
"Don't mention it. I'm kind of awesome, aren't I?"  
  
He couldn't disagree.  He reached for the  DS, checking out the game currently loaded into it. Huh, Animal Crossing. He wasn't necessarily familiar with it. He settled in to play, eyes narrowing at the two screens and the controls before he got used to them. The game was really cute, and all of the little town people were really nice. He didn't know games like this existed; he thought most video games were just shooting and killing and stuff.  He lost himself in the game. Nerris watched him for a bit, a sleepy grin on her face as she slipped in and out of consciousness.  
  
What felt like a few minutes later, he glanced over to her, to thank her or maybe smile or something to show his appreciation, but she as out cold. Sighing, Harrison put the device on the table and stared thoughtfully at her sleeping form She didn't look that heavy, and it definitely wasn't good for her to sleep hunched over like that. Still, Harrison wasn't the strongest person ever. He weighed his options for a minute before standing, grabbing the girl's arm and propping up over his shoulder. He hoisted her up bridal style, the only way he could effectively distribute her weight without dropping her. He managed to open the cracked door to the basement with his foot and carry her down, but he wasn't able to turn on the light and fumbled around for the bed, all but dropping her when he found it. Shit, he was weak. Maybe he should eat more? Nerris could probably carry him easier than that.  
  
He went to go retrieve the DS, the device illuminating his way back down into the basement and on the bed. He settled in next to her, not finding it as weird as the night prior, and started playing the game again, It was in real time, so he could see how late he was staying up. He felt the cool touch of nerris' hand around his waist and he tensed. She really seemed to do that in her sleep. It was partly cute and partly perturbing. Being this close to her always felt dangerous. Maybe it was because he was finding himself to be a little bit in like with her. Friend-like. Maybe. A little. Nothing else.  
  
And he didn't defend his parents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hoo. Okay. So I had an MRI today because of serious health concerns that are impeding my progress in the story. However!! I am starting a new Gwenvid fic.. soon-ish. Soonish. I may get hospitalized soon so I can't give a definite date on the next update.


	9. Not In A Million Years

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The play happens, and it goes about how you would expect. Neil can't keep his mouth shut and spoils Harrison's day. Wonder how he'll react to his newfound knowledge of Nerris' motives?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter's mostly filler but it really sets the stage for the next few chapters. we're about halfway done, counting the epilogue i have planned. thanks for being patient !

The morning was hectic, to say the least. Harrison spent the majority of the night playing Animal Crossing, fascinated by the game and it's numerous features, eyes fixated on the bright screen until Nerris rolled out of bed, hitting the floor as she usually did. The two rushed to get ready before heading to Nerris' school, home of the  Falcons. Nerris was oddly sullen, and for once, Harrison didn't need to ask why. He's sure he would even bully Nerris if he ever actually went to public school. She was a bonafide nerd; it just came with the territory.  
  
"Favoritism! That is so favoritism, do you see that, Harrison? ...You're not even paying attention to me. Look." As soon as Harrison turned his head to humor his shorter companion, eyes tired but not without humor, a playbill was shoved in his face.  
  
"See!" Nerris was pointing to one specific name. "Tabii plays Desdemona, and that's complete favoritism because I don't even think she's that good of an actress, Preston's just biased because of that dumb production he put on like, five years ago."  
  
"What would you even know about acting?" Harrison shook his head at her, words dripping with condescension, causing the girl to frown, eyebrow furrowing. "A lot, actually! More than you, dummy. Anyways, just hold up, okay? We're supposed to be meeting someone here."  
  
The auditorium was fairly large. the stage was mostly used for announcements and the like, but the occasional play was staged up there as well. The auditorium also doubled as the gym, so bleachers were pulled out, and rows of plastic, fold-up chairs were actually placed and arranged on the smooth floor. The school's colors, navy and white, decorated the dimly lit room, as well as numerous banners displaying the school's sports teams and achievements.  
  
Nerris crossed her arms and looked around. The two stood awkwardly beside a row of seats in the auditorium of Preston and Nerris' school. Nerris' father had dropped them off, promising to return after the show and leaving the two to find seats. The auditorium was fairly empty, but the chatter of rambunctious kids and their tired parents still made the sorceress' ears hurt. Most of the kids at her school didn't like her very much, and she didn't see anyone from DnD club there. She felt very out of place and wished Preston could be there to greet her. She knew he was probably stressing like crazy backstage, though, and sent him a quick text of support. He always got really touchy during showtimes, and she knew he would be wound up for the next week.  
  
The sounds of one-sided arguing drew Nerris from her thoughts. Her eyes meandered upwards and over, and she grinned. "Max!" She waved her friend over as soon as she spotted him, hopping up and down to make absolutely sure that he saw her. Of course, she was making a bit of a scene, and several kids near the two didn't bother stile their laughter. Nerris didn't flinch, instead continuing to wave, unabashed.  
  
Preston had invited Max to his show. Of course, at first he didn't want to go; hanging out with Nerris, Preston, and Harrison was much more excitement (read: irritating) than he was ready for, especially in non-camp season. It's not like he could go anyways-- his parents were not willing to take time to drive him sixty miles to see a shitty high school play put on by a guy he didn't even like. However, David was, and when Max let it slip that Preston was directing a play, he practically dropped everything to go see it, with Neil and Nikki (and eventually Max) tagging along, making plans to go to the carnival afterward with Nerris, Harrison, and Preston.  
  
Max pulled up the hood on his signature blue hoodie, rolling his eyes and shooting a final mean-spirited glare at David, who just grinned awkwardly and waved at the magic kids.  
  
"Okay, what bullshit play is this? I have suffered through half of a fucking 1975 almanac on tape for this, so it better  be fucking good." Max put his hands in the pocket of his hoodie, glaring at several of the teens seated in the auditorium, who immediately quieted and looked away. Nerris grinned. her sometimes-friend still looked like a middle schooler. Yeah, she was shorter, but that wasn't the point. She held out the playbill in front of her, and he snatched it, glaring at the cover art before flipping through it quickly.  
  
"Othello.... what the _fuck_? That is complete favoritism!"  
  
"That's what I said!! I mean, why is Tabii playing-"  
  
"No, no, shut up and look."  He handed the playbill back, motioning to it wildly with one hand. "Look who's playing Roderigo." Nerris squinted down at the paper, pushing her glasses further up her nose as she did so. "Neil Armstrong Jr.? ...Why should I care? Who's that?"  
  
"Oh my god, you idiot, that's Space Kid. That's _actually_ fucking Space Kid!" Nerris didn't even know that Space Kid was still on Earth, much less in her school and in the same grade as her. Why hasn't she seen him around? Why is he in the play? They used to kind of be friends, and now she forgot he existed. Time tended to do that. Now they really had to hang out sometime soon.  
  
Nerris simply shakes her head, gaze finally tilting back up. Nikki was now on David's shoulders, as if this were some sort of baseball game, getting a lot of strange looks from the house crew. Neil stared up at his not-quite step-sister with a look of annoyance on his face, and even from here,  they could hear his voice,  hushed and frantic, asking them to please stop making a scene.   The lanky camp counselor bounded up the bleacher, going to sit at a moderate height. He tilts his head up slightly as if to speak to Nikki, probably saying something like how this was the "perfect height for watching," or something similar to that. Max turned away from the absurdity, scoffing lightly and going to sit in one of the rows of chairs.  
  
Neil finally meandered down to join them, fiddling with the watch on his arm. "We still have ten minutes to kill before the show starts," he mumbled, "Shouldn't we get out of the aisles?"  
  
The play went about as well as one could expect. Space kid forgot a few of his lines but wasn't truly essential. He didn't have that helmet on his head, and his childish appearance and mousy brown hair made him look almost angelic. Tabii played an excellent Desdemona, read each of her lines as best as she could with a valley girl accent. "And yet I fear you; for you are fatal then.... when your eyes, like, roll so. Why I should fear I know not, since guiltiness I, like know not; but yet I feel I fear..."  
  
After the play, Nikki and David's energetic clapping and whoops could be heard over the polite claps of the rest of the audience, causing Neil to curl into himself, face flushed with embarrassment. Nerris joined in with the excited clapping just to spite him, and to top it all off, Tabii spotted him in the audience during her bow, squealed, and blew him a kiss. David and Nikki came down to join them once the bows were over.  
  
 David couldn't stop beaming with pride, astonished at the skill of his former camper in action. "I didn't know that Space Kid could act," he whispered excitedly to the kids as people began filing out.  
  
"Or do much of anything," Neil retorted, face still red. "C'mon Neil, don't be cranky because your girlfriend singled you out of the crowd," Nikki singsonged, despite her hate for the flower scout girls.  
  
"She is not my girlfriend! I don't even like her! I think she's the worst!" Neil sputtered, "Stop harassing me! I'm riding with Nerris and Harrison, at least they don't actively try and ruin my life!"  
  
The actors, now out of costume, went to convene with their family members.  Space Kid came by to say hello, and David immediately held out the playbill. "I'm gonna need your autograph for when your famous, Space Kid!" He grinned brightly, and the small wannabe astronaut couldn't help but follow suit.  
  
"Oh, I dunno about acting as a job," He started in a nasal tone, signing the paper in his barely-legible handwriting, next to his name, "But this was fun! I'm glad Preston bullied me into it." David blinked before his smile turned uneasy. "...Great, Space Kid! I'm glad you had fun! That's what's important."  
  
"Yeah, thanks. Um, my uncle as a convention to go to so I can't stick around. Bye, David-"  
  
"Wait, Space Kid!" Nerris held out her own playbill and motioned for him to sign. 'Phone number, too. We need to stay in contact." Space Kid grinned at seeing his old acquaintance from camp, and hurriedly signed the paper. Nerris couldn't tell if that was a 2 or a 5, but she figured she could figure out the number by trial and error.  
  
Max snorted, turning to face Nerris. "You want to talk to him? On purpose?  Talk about suicidal.  Makes me wanna blow my fuckin' brains out." Nerris flicked him on the forehead, and he ducked. "Hey, just saying-"  
  
"NEIL!"  
  
"Ohmygod-" Neil attempted to hide in the ugly green sweater he wore,  pulling the turtleneck of the sweater up to his nose, obscuring the lower part of his face. It was too late for him; the blonde girl that would occasionally torment him throughout their days at separate summer camps came bounding up to him, throwing her arms around him and grinning. She was still shorter than him by a large margin, but definitely stronger. "It's like, amazing to see you," She gushed, "Did you like my show?"  
  
"Oh, he _LOVED_ it," Max intervened, smirking lightly at Neil, "He was gonna give you a standing ovation, but he's too shy. Right, Neil?"  
  
"...Right," he mumbles, causing the girl to squeal. and give him another bone-crushing hug. "Alright, look, I  gotta go help Erin help the new girls. She's, like, so worthless. But, I'll see you around camp in three months. Bye!!"  
  
"Dude. I was sure she was gonna ask you for her number, and you'd have to put up with her triple texting  you." Max shook his head. "Waste of a lie." Neil grumbled something about fucking killing him, going back to hiding in his sweater and crossing his arms.  
  
Nerris ad Harrison looked at each other, before grinning. This was the type of interaction they missed, jut the antics and the wildness of summer afternoons.  The small party walked out into the cool crisp air of early afternoon. Nikki, excited with the prospect of being outside again, whooped loudly, racing to David's old car and waiting for him to unlock it.  
  
Nerris' father stood next to his car, twirling the keys between two fingers. "Let's see. One, two, three, four, five kids. Where's your friend, Nerris? Preston?"  That caused Nerris to start. "Oh my god. We forgot Preston-!!" Luckily, they haven't moved from their location, otherwise, he would have been unbelievably snippy with them for the next few days.  
  
"I'll text him now, dad," Nerris assured her father, before reaching into her pocket to get her phone. She's miraculously not messed with it all day, even to check the time, which is a new feat for her.  
  
_Hey, we're @ my_ dads _car._  
  
_k talking w. parents abt creative choices be out in 10_  
  
Sighing, Nerris put away her phone. "He's not ready." Of course he wasn't. He liked to talk with parents about why their kids got cast and future opportunities and the troupe and scholarship opportunities. He did this all the time, for every show and improv congregation and... everything. Preston's so extra.  
  
"...I'm not riding with you, Max. You betrayed my trust!" Nerris could hear Neil's voice grow closer as he walked away from David's car. "Can I ride with you all? I think forty-five minutes of listening to almanacs is going to drive me crazy."  
  
Nerris' dad looked down at him, before nodding, a slight glimmer of recognition in his face. "'Course! You can ride shotgun if you want."  Neil nodded, grateful to not be crammed into the back seats with the performing arts kids. The bickering would have bee slightly worse than the almanacs.  
  
David's car pulled ahead. Nerris figured they'd be meeting n the same location anyway and didn't worry. "Ugh, what's taking him so long...?" Nerris muttered,  crossing her arms and tilting her head back to look at the sky.  
  
"Stop complaining, Nerris. It's a nice day1 Enjoy it!" Both Nerris and Neil glared at Harrison for this comment, then at each other in a kind of _he doesn't get it_ look.  "Whatever, Harrison! You look like a gecko, so it's no wonder you like the sun so much," Nerris replied. It was a weak insult, but it was sure to shut him up for now.  She was met with a slight smile from him that caused her face to go warm. "...Whatever." She turned away from him, suppressing a smile and fidgeting her hands.  
  
Preston finally made is way out of the school, running quickly towards Nerris' familiar car "Don't leave me!"  Neil pressed a finger to his temple, as if  in preparation, and  sighed, almost dramatically."I'm here! I'm here!" Preston panted slightly, leaning over and placing his hands on his knees as if he were winded. "Lots of parents.  A lot of signing. Space Kid got lost in a crowd of like, five people. It's kind of a rough day. So! Carnival!" He straightened up almost immediately, a bright grin on his fac.e "I call shotgun!- Oh, hi, Nerris' dad." He waved.  
  
"Already got shotgun," Neil piped up raising his hand. Prestons rolled his eyes dramatically and settled with the back seat, opening the car door and getting in.   Nerris and Harrison sat on either side of him. Nerris leaned on his shoulder, closing her eyes in preparation for the long car ride. Soon, she was asleep. The radio was on, blasting RnB hits from the eighties unnecessarily loud as the car rolled down the highway.  
  
"She never lasts more than ten minutes in any car," Preston whispered, voice still moderately loud for the tone he was trying to go for. A small smile creeped onto Harrison's face again.  
  
 "So, I take it you aren't hating your stay here?" Preston's grin was snide, and he arched an eyebrow. Harrison shook his head, before pausing. he glared at Preston, who just grinned.  
  
Harrison knew Preston was right, and he wasn't  hating his time here. In fact, it was... fun. Nerris was fun, and tolerate him. She didn't run from him or find him terrifying. "...Guess not," was all he said, even if he was thinking a million other things, like the tiny gap in Nerris' teeth when she grinned really wide, and the deep blue of her eyes that seemed to cloud when she was thinking and clear when she had an idea. The way that she pushed up her glasses before she proved a point, and her short stature, and the way her freckles look like tiny constellations on her face-  
  
"Earth to Harry," Preston crooned, expression smug when he began to notice Harrison spacing out. "You like her, huh?" Preston whispered so that Nerris' father wouldn't hear.  
  
"What?" Harrison snorted, crossing his arms and looking out the window. "Not in a million years. Not in two million- No." Preston rolled his eyes again but tried to stay still so Nerris wouldn't wake up. Her arms were around his waist, and he pat her hair affectionately.  
  
"Listen, Nerris is my absolute best friend. If you like her, just... tell her. She likes when you keep things real," Preston urged. Harrison shook his head. "Not in a million years," he repeated.  
  
Neil leaned back, giving his two cents, keeping his voice down. "I mean, Nerris is, first of all, barely capable of any emotion other than conceit. Second of all, she... I don't think she likes you. She... Okay. I probably shouldn't say this out loud but she had an entire plan with Max to try and make your life as miserable as possible while you were here. I don't think she went through with it, but- You know. It was an idea- Sorry."  
  
Preston looked absolutely crestfallen. "Really? Ugh. Seriously, Nerrie..." He mumbled to the girl resting on his shoulder, who shifted slightly but did not stir.  
  
"Well, it's a good thing I don't like her, then," Harrison said after a moment of silence, filled only with music. He shrugged with Preston looked at him, amber eyes large and confused.  "I'm serious, Preston, it's not a big deal."  
  
On the inside, though, it felt like a big deal.  They all rode in uncomfortable silence for the rest of the way. Harrison wished Neil would have just kept his mouth shut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so during the last few weeks i  
> \- had my test to make sure I didn't have cancer  
> \- had a talk w/ social services  
> \- have been practicing for the play nonstop  
> \- gt blood drawn for arthrits test  
> -had finals  
> \- had bronchitis TWICE (currently having it the second time)  
> BUT NOW ITS ALMOST CHRISTMAS BREAK SO MAYBE UPDATES WILL FLOW!  
> Thank you for being patient!
> 
> also david and max still keep in touch and david comes and gets him when he feels like he phyiscally cannot handle his shitty family anymore and takes him to do something fun


	10. Your Obt. Servt, P. Goodplay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Preston actually gives some good advice and Harrison's coming to terms with the things that Nerris makes him feel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is for Little Keplerette (classycloudcuckoolanderclasso) who i have seen play an amazing nerris with an amazing harrison !!! if you like this story go follow em on tumblr cus theyre good inspiration.

Nerris woke up about ten minutes before they got to the fair, her internal alarm clock seemingly perfect at this sort of stuff. She stretches, almost hitting both Preston and Harrison in the face at the same time, before going back to leaning on Preston's shoulders. "Are we there yet?"  
  
 Harrison was cold. Not really on the outside, but on the inside, because he felt something in his heart when Nerris opened her beautiful deep-sea blue eyes, peering into his face blearily. "Almost," Neil called from the front seat, checking the GPS the car has installed into it. Good thing for it too; Nerris' dad was hopeless with directions. "Eight more miles."  
  
Nerris nodded, and her fluffy hair swished with her and for some reason, that made Harrison's heart hurt even more. It was foolish of him to think that there was a chance Nerris had liked him, even as a friend. Girls with pet birds and fire-resistant capes and two loving parents and a stable home and top grades liked guys with glasses and bright smiles and charming attitudes. Girls like Nerris did not like boys like Harrison. And that's just the way it was.  
  
"...rrison?" Harrison blinked and shook his head, turning to Preston, who had just spoken. He'd missed all of what his friend had said. "Huh?--" The theatre boy rolled his amber eyes, expression laced with what only could be described as scorn. "Pay attention, Harry. God, I don't ask for much."  And he reached out and pat his face, condescendingly of course. Nerris gave a tired little snort at that. Harrison turned to look at her again, his heart doing a little spinny thing in a chest again that made him feel very sick.  When she noticed he was looking, she frowned and turned her face into Preston's shoulder, as if embarrassed. She tended to do stuff like that a lot-  
  
"As I was saying, what are you going to do when we get there? I'm aiming to win a prize, myself." He put a hand on his chest while he was speaking, tilting his head up haughtily. "They're rigged,"' Nerris' muffled voice came from his shoulder. Preston just scoffed, and Harrison smiled dully, too wrapped up in his thoughts to really be paying attention. With magic, nothing is rigged.  
  
The car slowly pulled to a stop. Harrison realized Preston was still looking at him as if imploring him to answer the question. "...Hm, uh, I'll see when we get in," he replied, dimly, just staring out the window and at the carnival spiraling ahead of them, around a block ahead. he exited the car and raced towards the ticket stands. He knew he'd need an adult to actually buy them for him, but he didn't feel like talking to anyone right now, and it was better to hide under the guise of being excited that it was to show them he was miffed. Because that's what he was. He was miffed.  
  
Finally, the rest of everyone caught up to him, Preston and Nerris taking the front. Nerris' dad was close behind, and Neil got there last, huffing and puffing. "Why did you run?" He wheezed at Harrison with what little breath he had. He shrugged in response while Nerris' dad paid for the tickets. He didn't even feel like talking to Neil for what he told him.  And it wasn't even Neil's fault. It was his own for being so gullible-  
  
"Aw, how!" The loud voice of Nikki suddenly reverberating in his ear, causing Neil to double over from shock and Nerris to jump about a foot in the air. Nikki giggled fiendishly. David and Max soon caught up, the boy on his former camp counselors should because he didn't feel like walking.  
  
"What do you mean, 'aw how?'" Nerris tilted her head inquisitively, at Nikki hops up and down, stretching up on her tiptoes to peer at the ticket costs. "Oh, I was just sayin' that 'cus you got here first and I made David speed for like maybe ten whole miles! So unfair." Nikki shook her head before continuing to look. Nerris and Preston looked at each other, eyebrows raised.  
  
"Here you go," Nerris' dad parceled out some tickets, and Nerris and Preston raced ahead, excited like, well, children. When Harrison got his own, he followed in after them, side-by-side with Neil, Max, and Nikki, who could barely contain be her excitement. "I'll catch up," David called out almost wearily, staying behind with Nerris' dad.  
  
Harrison could see Preston pull on Nerris' cape, directing her to one of the games. She pulled back her face, suddenly irritated, and pointed towards Harrison. He felt his heart freeze for a second, before continuing as-usual.  
  
They seemed to be waving him over now. "Come on, dummy," Nerris called out, and wasn't it weird that she was only calling to him, and not the trio right next to him? Nikki and Max looked at each other for a second and shrugged. Max crossed his arms, "So, uh, are you just gonna standing there like a fuckin' statue, or...?" He made a shooing gesture with his hands. Harrison still didn't move.  
  
"Dude, haven't you been near her for like, two days? Or three?" Nikki piped up, her hair swishing as she gesticulated while taking, "So, why are you so wigged out all of a sudden? Oh- Oh, wait let me guess. Did she put one of her dice under your seat before you sat down? Because that would hurt-"  
  
"Because she doesn't want to be around me," He blurted, louder than he'd meant to. They'd stopped walking by now, and Harrison shoved his hands in his pockets, shoulders tensing at the way everyone looked at him.  
  
"I mean, can you blame h- OW!" Neil screeched as Nikki elbowed him in the side, shaking her head vigorously. "Not the time for your deep-seated views on magic, Neil."  
  
Harrison looked back at his two friends; Preston had won something, what looked like a stuffed dolphin, and he'd given it to Nerris. Harrison could hear her squealing from here, thanking him a million times over. And then, suddenly, she stopped and turned to look at him, still kind of far away. "I said get over here!" Her face broke into a braces-lined grin. And that hurt most of all. Harrison felt in a haze, like he wasn't anywhere.  
  
When she saw that he wasn't smiling, her grin dimmer, ad she turned to say something to Preston. Her eyebrows furrowed, and her arms crossed. Preston nodded, loping over to Harrison and the others. "Hell-o-o-o, Harry!" He'd plastered a smile on his face, and Harrison could tell at once that it was fake, laced with concern. He waved his hands at Nikki, Max, and Neil. "There's a whole carnival out there, you three." They got the hint and made themselves scarce.  
  
Preston turned to Harrison, expression more serious  "What's up with you? I haven't seen you do one thing yet, you've all just been standing here talking like you aren't at a place filled with wonder, joy, and performing arts." Harrison sighed. Since he was being forced to talk about his problems, and Nerris was way over there, maybe he should just get it out and be over it and have fun.  
  
"Fine! Okay, sheesh. It's just that, Neil told me some stuff about, you know, Nerris actually hating me, I guess?? And not wanting to hang around me? And it sucks because, I dunno, I just thought--" And he paused there because Preston looked all-too-interested to hear what he was going to say next.  
  
"You just thought what?" The way Preston said that made Harrison's shoulders tense more and his eyes turned towards the ground as he rubbed the back of his head. He took off his hat and began to turn it in his hands.  
  
Preston raised an eyebrow at his behaviors. "I just thought--- I just thought she wanted to hang out with me, I guess. I thought we were past all of this. She told me a lot about her and I- I liked when she told me things. I liked learning about her, and it's like-- it-- It sucks." His shoulders relaxed finally as if he'd gotten it all out.  
  
"Then why don't you tell her?" Preston jerked his thumb over to where Nerris stood, trying to knock over pins to win something for Preston, a look of utter concentration on her face.  
  
"Because she'll think it's dumb," Harrison said, the answer coming as easy as anything. His cheeks were a little pink because admitting your feelings in front of your best friend is hard when you never see him.  
  
"What? She wouldn't- She- Hm." Harrison could see Preston had stopped to consider it. "Well, yes, she's a bit headstrong," He smiles fondly, "and that's an understatement. She's a regular A. Hamilton, but she's got a heart, you know. And she trusts you with, whatever, all that stuff she said, and that has to mean something, right?" Harrison nodded. "Right! It means something. So what you've got to do is see what it means."  
  
"How am I supposed to do that?" Preston stared at Harrison as if he were an alien. "Well, Harry, dear, you do this thing where you open your mouth and words come out." Harrison rolled his eyes. "Shut up. I get it." It wasn't that easy.  
  
"So what are you waiting for, Harry? Get over to her, and give her your scarlet letter, and see what she turns it into- And don't say it's not that easy," He gives a Look, holding up a finger,"Because it is. You're getting hung up over old nonsense, you're making it hard for you, like the misunderstanding that drives the first half of the first act of 9 to 5." He pauses, seeing the utterly confused look on Harrison's face.  "What I mean is, you aren't saying what's on your mind. Just go and do it!"  
  
Without another word, Preston put his hands on Harrison's shoulder, kisses him on the cheek, smiled, spun him around, and pushed him towards Nerris. Harrison stumbled, scowling, before finding the stride in his step again. Nerris turned around as he approached.  
  
"Hey, Harrison! Uh, I'm almost out of tickets already." Her nose wrinkled a little when she frowned. How could he have missed that about her? It was cute-  
  
Right, focus! "Uhm." Nevermind. He'll try again. "You- You can use some of mine if you need to.  I'd like to save five, though." He reached into his pocket and handed her all of his tickets, except for five. He didn't know what to do in places like this, anyways.  
  
"Cool!" Nerris snatched them up, folded them and kept them in one of the folds of her cloak. "You didn't have to, so if you need them back, I've got you. What d'you want five for, the little octopus ride? Are you a baby, Harrison?" She batted her lashes, before laughing, obviously having a good time.    
  
"Uh, no. I don't know what that is. I just want to go on the Ferris wheel five times. Or, uh, the Nerris wheel. Hah--" No, that was Preston-levels of bad. Still, Nerris snorted and rolled her eyes.  
  
"Dummy. Well, I'm all done here. I don't know how Preston managed to win because this is clearly rigged," And she tossed a haughty grin to the guy running the stand, who waved.  
  
Harrison smiled slightly, taking a breath before holding out his hand. "Well, then, you're coming with me. Because I heard some stuff, and I'm mad, but I don't want to be mad at you. I want to have fun with you." Nerris blinked at him once. Twice. And her face broke into the biggest smile yet.  
  
"Well, what are we waiting for, then?"


	11. Nerris Wheel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Ferris wheel goes round and round as the two magic kids talk about their weird feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's the last main chapter of "A Weekend at Nerris'!" There's going to be an epilogue soon. Thank you for sticking through this bit of cheesiness with me! This chapter is very, very dialogue heavy.

Things looked so pretty from the top of the Ferris wheel, and Harrison almost forgot that he was mad in the first place. He could see a green speck from way up high that he assumed to be Nikki and her mess of hair. "Hey Nerris, look." He pointed and leaned down, causing the whole compartment to tilt and shake. Nerris screeched like a bird and latched onto him.  
  
"Don't do that, Harrison! What if the whole thing gives out?" Her nails were digging into his arm, which seemed like a fair price to pay for how close she was to him right now. Still, it kind of hurt. "Ow," He mumbled. Nerris looked down, realized that she was honest-to-god clinging to him, and jumped away, cheeks growing warm. This caused the compartment to lurch forwards once more, just as the ride began to descend. Again, she closed her hand around his arm in a vice grip. Harrison snorted, rolling his eyes as they began to descend, stopping again at the halfway point, swaying gently.  
  
"If it broke, I'd float us down to the ground, but the ride would calm down if you calmed down," he quipped, receiving no reply as Nerris looked out the windows of the box as if finally seeing how pretty the world looked from up so high. Her mouth fell open into a little 'o' shape, and her blue eyes went wide and endless, as they always did. Even when her words were harsh, her eyes would betray how she felt. It was endearing.  
  
"Whatever," she finally said back, slowly detaching herself from Harrison's arm. "I'm only up here because you said you wanted to talk about something, and you haven't even gotten to it yet."   
  
That was true. Harrison was still trying to figure out how to phrase his thoughts in a way that wouldn't evoke the wrath of the smaller girl. "Well, uh. How do you feel about me?" That was definitely a way to start.  
  
Nerris turned back to look at him, one eyebrow raised. She was the picture of irritated if you didn't look hard enough. But Harrison did. Her shoulders were slightly raised, her eyes narrowed just a little bit. Guarded. Skeptical. It's amazing what you can learn about someone in a few days, but Harrison realized he wasn't just looking at Nerris over the course of those four days. With their rivalry (that felt oddly foolish now), he'd always been looking at her body language. It's the only way he could know whether to strike or back down or to retreat altogether.  
  
"That's a stupid question. Why are you asking me this, huh?" This was not a time to back down. Harrison set his jaw and crossed his arms. "Because Neil told me that you were planning to sabotage my visit." Nerris flinched at that, just barely. "But you didn't. Why? I mean, I'm kinda having, you know. Fun."  
  
Nerris now understood the point of the Ferris wheel. She couldn't run away from what he said, she couldn't even distract herself with games or the amusements around her. All she can do is look out the window and put off answering as long as she could. With her charisma modifier, it was a pretty long time; the ride began its descent back to ground level before she spoke again. Only four more rotations to go.   
  
"Because it's different now." It was hot in here, wasn't it? Nerris fidgeted with the end of her cape and swallowed heavily. She didn't like being put on the spot with how she felt if "indignant" wasn't an answer she could readily use.   
  
"What do you me-"  
  
"Shut up! I'm getting to it." Harrison held his hands up in mock surrender and she frowned at him.   
  
"When I saw you again, you weren't just the other Magic kid. The stupider one." Her lips quirked up warily, and her eyes seemed to glint. "You were Harrison. And you weren't weird about anything. You fought me and it was awesome!" The shine was definitely in her eyes again. She looked the same way she did when she talked about Magic: The Gathering back in camp for hours on end. Engaged.  The fact that she looked like this while talking about Harrison made his face feel warm.  "Don't get me wrong, Harrison, you still suck, but way less." That's the closest she's gotten to complimenting him.  
  
"And you listened to me, obviously because I'm one of the coolest and cutest people that you know, but..." She trailed off, looking away from him again, "Not many people do that." The wheel was heading upwards again.  
  
"Ugh, this is so weird," She said after a while, "You're the last person I expect to, like, pour my emotions out on. This is so weird."  
  
"It's weird because you're making it weird," Harrison retorted, remembering what Preston texted him the first night of his visit. "Wh-" Nerris sputtered, before giving him a shove. Again, the box shook, and she yelled as if they were secretly on a roller coaster. This time, she hugged the toy that Preston won her instead of inadvertently assaulting her friend with her nails.   
  
"Fine, so what if I am making it weird?" She said, once she'd calmed down and everything stopped shaking. From the ground, it must have been odd to see one compartment of the wheel sporadically shake every now and again.  "This is something that is weird! We've never done this before! Let me make it weird!" Her face felt oddly warm, and she drew her cape around herself.   
  
Maybe Harrison could have said that to Preston. That would have been a lot easier than essentially cuddling his rival.   
  
Back to the top of the Ferris wheel. The view was amazing, and the green speck that was presumably Nikki had moved locations. Harrison tried to find his other friends in the crowd, but it proved to be surprisingly difficult. "Yeah, that makes sense, I guess. It's weird for me too, because I've never had to do this with anyone. Usually, people pick on me or hate me and I just let them because I don't' feel like I can do anything about it," He's beginning to ramble, "And it used to be like that with you? But now it's not. It's different, and I don't know why. I feel like I can talk to you without being pummeled to death. Sometimes," He added, not wanting to test his luck.   
  
Nerris cracked a genuine, crooked grin. "Sometimes," She repeated, sounding a lot less awkward. "That means a lot. It was worded weirdly because you're weird and this is weird, but it means a lot."   
  
Descent. Three more rotations to go.   
  
"I'm sorry for not telling you. Who'd you hear about it from?" Nerris was essentially asking which of her friends she would have to maim later on in life, and Harrison definitely picked up on this.  
  
"Neil," He said, and Nerris sighed. "He's not really good with secrets. I mean, he's basically spoiled half of Battlestar Galactica for me, and then wonders why I haven't watched it yet." Harrison had little to no idea what that was, but nodded anyway.   
  
"And I understand if you're pissed at me. I'd be pissed at you! Even if I didn't do it, it's the thought that counts, as the adults say." A heartfelt apology? From Nerris?  What alternate universe had Harrison fallen into in order to receive this? "...It's fine. And you said something the adults say,  even though I think the context is different? Maybe we're maturing." Without thinking about it, he reached for her hand.   
  
At first, Nerris pulled back a little, and Harrison realized his mistake. He was about to say something to apologize, maybe an 'oh my gosh, I'm an idiot and I'm sorry,' but Nerris just held his hand after the initial surprise and leaned against him as the Ferris wheel rose once more.   
  
They rode in silence for the rotation, for once just enjoying the other's company. It was something neither of them ever thought would happen.   
  
"I think I have a crush on you," Harrison blurted, disrupting the peace. They did not have enough rotations for this and he knew it. Nerris stiffened slightly, tilting her head ever-so-slightly upwards to look at him. "Uh, what?"   
  
He repeated himself, and Nerris sat up, turning to look at him. Her face was rather stern, her eyes darting across his face, trying to see if he was lying or joking. "You're serious." It wasn't a question, but he nodded anyway.  
  
He prepared himself for Nerris to call him names or be disgusted. The wheel was descending again, so he wouldn't' be surprised if she stormed off the ride before all five rotations were completed. But she didn't do any of that. She just smiled. It was a dorky, braces-lined grin. Her eyes looked electric. She looked completely elated, even as she removed her hands from his.   
  
"No one's ever had a crush on me before," She said as if to explain her expression. Harrison, despite his proclamation, didn't find it that hard to believe. Nerris is someone you'd have to know a long time to really like.   
  
"And I'm super flattered!! But, you know, I think we should work on actually becoming friends before, you know, uhm." She apparently couldn't say the word 'dating' in this context. There was the rejection. Harrison really didn't expect anything different.   
  
Apparently, she spotted something different in his gaze, because she softened, grabbing his hand again to make him look at her. "I think I like you too," She said, voice lined with the same quiet sincerity it was the day prior when she came out to him. That resolute softness was a side to her that still caught him off guard.  "But right now, that's never gonna work because you're just starting to not get on my nerves, dummy. We gotta build a base, okay?" She looked a little sad, all of a sudden.   
  
"And you're leaving today," She said, and that settled in. The atmosphere became darker as she looked away. "I dunno how long it takes for mail to reach me from the sticks," rude, "But send me letters."   
  
"We have phones," Harrison said, rolling her eyes like she was being ridiculous.  
  
"I still want letters! Just, every once in a while. Please."   
  
And when Nerris looked at him like that, how could Harrison ever say no?   
  
The last two rotations were spent trying to work out the logistics of how their long-distance "Friendlationship" was going to work. They made sure to have each other's addresses, and tried to correlate times when they both didn't have school to plan potential future trips.

"Being mature sucks," Nerris said at one point, even though she was the one who set boundaries in the first place. Harrison, after a moment, agreed with her. Being mature did suck, but that didn't mean that Nerris wasn't right. She was, she usually was, and she was right about them needing to become better friends before anything else happened.

Soon, the rotations were up and they were kicked off the ride, minus five tickets. They still had a few to spend, and they did so promptly, playing games and getting their faces painted. It was obvious that Harrison had never done anything like this before in his life. It was also obvious that he enjoyed doing these things.  
  
Eventually, they ran into Neil, Max, Nikki, Preston, and their respective guardians/parents. It was time to part ways.   
  
Nerris, of course, socked Neil in the arm. "What was that for!" His exclamation fell on deaf ears as Nerris turned away, giving Nikki a hug and nodding to Max. They were never really too close.  
  
"Alllright kids! Let's get you home before your parents flay me alive!" A rather dark sentence said with all of David's enthusiasm and cheer, of course. He left with the teens under his care.  
  
"...What a chipper man," Nerris' father said, and his daughter nodded, smiling brightly. "He's always like that." 

* * *

After dropping off Preston, Nerris' dad took the two remaining children home. It was time for Harrison to pack to get on the bus to go home. The DM's father said he would drive him, but he insisted there was no need for that and that he would walk by himself, even though it was evening. Nerris didn't like the idea of him riding a bus at night with strangers, but then remembered about his powers and didn't fuss too much. She helped him pack.  
  
"I wish you could stay another day," She complained, something he never thought she would ever say, or that he would ever agree with. He nodded, silent, as he hoisted his case up the stairs. "There's always next time." That brought the happy expression back to her freckled face. He wanted to take a picture of it, before remembering that he could. "Hey, take a picture with me. So, you know, I have something to remember you by." Nerris snorted at that. "How could you _not_ remember me?" Still, she smiled for a picture and hoped she didn't look too stupid in it.

"Okay, now I have to head for the bus so I don't miss it." The sad look came back, but there was nothing Harrison could do about it. Nerris opened her arms, and he hugged her tightly, patting her on the back once for good measure. "I'll see you in a few months for camp?"

" _Of course_ you will, dummy. I wouldn't miss it for the world."

And she meant it.


End file.
